Dreams and Legends
by Namathorn
Summary: Thuron, ravaged by war and in need of salvation. Legends passed down through the generations tell of a band of strangers that came together to return hope and peace to the people. It doesn't say if it was brought through destruction, or brought peacefully
1. Prologue

Prologue

It was a simple time, when people worked the land for food, tribute to their respective rulers, and lived out their lives like the simple folk most people in the villages throughout Thuron. When the young dreamt of grand adventures and making history. It was a time when the great plains of Thuron saw peace. Dralgo, had become known as the largest city in all of Thuron. They say that when it was being built, they had so many skilled people to help; they decided to move the city further north, so it was surrounded by tall, beautiful mountains on one side and a wide ocean on the other. Once every few years the king would hold tournaments to appease the small villages who felt like they were nothing more than dirt on the shoes of the rich. Warriors from far and wide came to these competitions to show their skills and prove their worth to the world. It truly was warrior's haven. The next largest city that was founded went by the name of Zocun. Zocun was more of a trade center than a city. Merchants from all over came with their wares to sell to the highest bidder in hopes of making their lives easier, better, more fulfilling. It was a came to be known as Traders Paradise. The last kingdom to finalize its borders, Kushu was known as the City of Colors. Its main source of entertainment encircled the artists. Every year they held the Festival of Senses. It was a grand event that contained many attractions which excited every sense in your body. There were many small villages scattered about the land but if nothing important was passing through, they fell through the pages of history. Soon afterward a terrible war erupted and tore the land apart. Men changed, people killed, and futures vanished from times path. In order to bring peace back to the people Dralgo's King had decided to raise an army that to combat this terrible force. At the moment he was examining a map with his advisor. She was intelligent and wise woman who went by the name of Abidona Chausten. She had advised his father before him when his father ruled and would never dare to go against her logic, for she had helped his father quell countless civil uprisings during the Great Divide. Her economical advice alone had helped make Dralgo the way it was today.

"Your majesty I brought the people you ordered me to find." A messenger said bowing before the king, Lord Franz.

"Thank you, bring them in." He asked Abidona to leave them, she bowed in compliance, and although she made it clear she hated his decision with an evil glare aimed at the seven people in the doorway it couldn't be helped. The seven people entered and bowed, "please, I have little time for formalities, come." He said waving them over to a table covered in maps.

These seven people Lord Franz had desperately searched for. They were from all over Thuron. The man that seemed to lead this little band was a man that went by the name of M'kael Fowl. The woman standing to his side like an Amazonian guarding her king went by the name of Alyssa Trestle who was from the kingdom of Kushu, unfortunately that was all his informants had been able to find out. If he didn't know better he would have assumed they were something of an item, the way the two of them stood next to each other but it was of little consequence to him.

"Please, I have searched for you because I have heard of your reputations" Franz said looking to each one, "your band of warriors is know throughout the land as a righteous sword known only to sell their swords to those of like mindset. I am in need of this sword for my righteous cause... the people's cause."

"What a speech, no wonder your in a position of power, what with a tongue like that you could spin a tale to turn even the cruelest of killers to turn over a new leaf. So what do you need us for, if you already have an army?" one of the seven members said.

"Jonathan, for once show a little respect and think before you let something out of yer mouth. One day it might just git ya inta trouble an I won't be there to bail ya out." Another woman of the band of seven said shaking her head. The woman went by the name of Sasha Gorlin. His reports indicated she came from a somewhat noble family in Thirsh's capital city, which one he didn't know. Jonathan Zomas and his hawk, Starswift came from Zocun. His reports indicated his family had trained him to be a Tracker from a young age, as he grew older he honed his skills and sold them to any in need of them.

"I beg your forgiveness, your majesty. Some of this group traveling together still holds... ill feelings... towards some of your economical decisions over the years. Please continue with why we are here." A man leaning against a wall said not removing his eyes from the window. The man who spoke carried a bow on his back and two long, slender knives one on each side of his waist. His bow told him instantly who he was. He went by the name of F'lorin Yaru, stories of his expertise with his bow and his honorable way of living had preceded him. If he remembered correctly he was a wanderer who originally came from a village to the north of Dralgo.

"If you would help lead my army as my tactical advisers in this war, I would gladly make you an offer none could refuse" they looked from one another exchanging silent thoughts, "what would that be ma lord, what could ya give us to make us not leave right now and let ya deal with ya own problems, hmm?"

Lord Franz suspected she was the outspoken one of the group, yet the man known as Jonathan was a close second.

"I will offer you all positions in my court. You can finally change the laws for the better of your homes. Jonathan... those economical matters affecting your village, can go away and with your help now I can make you my financial adviser. Then you can improve the lives of all those you left behind."

It seemed to hit him because he went silent, really thinking this decision over. For some time he said nothing until, "so those tax laws you passed las year... I could git rid of em, may hap even raise em on those rich arses in ma village?" Lord Franz nodded, "then count me in laddy! Whoops, I ment m'lord" he said concluding his part in this meeting. Lord Franz let himself have a little victory sigh of relief in the back of his mind. So I've won one over, I just have to change the other six's minds. Lord help me, because if I don't... I don't want to think about it.

"That offer may work for him, but I want something a little more concrete if you know what I mean, would you be able to help my family have a little more influence in Thirsh? Can you wipe away any discredit my family may have had done to them? Can you return my family's happiness?" another woman in their band said walking towards him, almost letting some of her frustration slip into her voice. He didn't know much about her except that his informants said her name was Pamela and she was born somewhere in Dralgo.

He looked directly into her eyes, wanting to desperately win all of them over. "I will do all that is within my power to convince her majesty to return to you and your family all that has been taken from you and your kin." He said looking from one to another, holding her gaze wanting her to fully grasp that he really would do all he could.

"Yeah alright, I'm in" she said patting him on the shoulder, "see that wasn't that hard now huh?" then walked away and sat in a chair with a drink in each hand.

He couldn't believe it, this was going to easy. He could only hope and pray the other five would be able to win over as these two. Once those two concluded to help Lord Franz; two others in M'kael's band followed suit, including F'lorin which was a great victory in Lord Franz's mind. By midday he had won over half the group and was pushing for the fifth member, Sasha Gorlin.

"Sasha, if you would help me, help the kingdom of Dralgo it would be in your debt. What can I do to turn your heart?"

"You can start by stopping your blubberin like a little baby and your flowery talk, just ask for my help with dignity, a true leader should suck it up and just ask your question, what's the worst that kin happen? I say no?" she said challenging his leadership. He examined her face wondering what it was she was after. Exhaling a long breath and taking in a long breath he said, "Sasha Gorlin, would you help me in my time of need?"

"That's more like it, ya bloody damn convincin when you're sincere, and even kinda cute." She said laughing as he blushed at her comment. He quickly gathered his composure and looked around for the last two, in all of his conversations he noticed out of the corner of his eye the two of them had been watching him, like a predator does its prey, like a smithy wondering if the weapon he was creating would be used for vengeance... or for retribution.

"It would seem the others have been swayed by your actions and your words," a female voice said. He turned around to find Alyssa and M'kael together yet again staring intently into his eyes, "Yes I am relieved that they are honorable and just. The stories I have heard from my informants about your band giving their support to only a truly righteous cause was true."

"Yes, it would seem" was all she said. The two of them exchanged glances, as they did this he noticed the others had all grown quiet. They were wondering if their leader would do the same, if he would use his swords for this man wanting their help for his war that would most likely shape the future of Thuron.

M'kael spoke finally, "Let me ask my comrades this one question; would you follow him even if I were to refuse?" the others looked to each other and once again exchanged that silent look he noticed throughout this meeting, the look people who were one yet not one people who act together yet are just as deadly by themselves. They all looked towards him and nodded in agreement, Sasha even walked back to stand by his side. M'kael nodded and turned to face Franz, "now let me ask you this, what is your purpose for doing this? Tell me what your heart has planned for the future. Tell me why you would have us bloody our blades for your cause? Burden our hearts with the death of so many to come in this war so that yours could stay pure?"

He almost laughed out loud, he could see why he was their leader. He asks what no one will, he speaks what everyone fears to say. He truly was worthy to lead this band of warriors.

"When I was little my father led Dralgo through much pain, much sorrow. The people loved him, they showed their loyalty by trying to support whatever cause he was leading, whether it be a simple tribute to some remote village or bringing three kingdoms closer together," he was speaking of the Treaty of Three, or the peaceful conclusion to what could have been total annihilation of the three major kingdoms. "I was walking through the city when I overheard some of the local merchants talking. The only thing I remember is that they said my father was a kind, and strong ruler. That life was truly peaceful with him as ruler" Lord Franz said walking over to the window, "I would like to let those kids there experience the peace those merchants felt they had when I was little. I want to be a kind, strong ruler, like my father was before me."

It was silent for what seemed like an eternity, the only noise being the sounds of the kids playing in the streets, the soft sounds of the merchants in the bazaar off a ways, and the soft, soothing, melodies the chirping birds were singing.

"I believe you have the full support of the Band of Seven."

The months that followed, with the help of the Band of Seven, the terror that rose to strike fear in the hearts of people across Thuron was slowly being beaten back towards the capital of the country that had suddenly risen on an island off the western shores of Thuron. The ruler of the kingdom that had quietly been founded had come to be known as the Dolyon Empire. Few people hated life on the island, although some disliked how life was there. So they fled the capital, few made out alive. Even fewer made it off the coast and sailed safely threw the whirlpools surrounding its coastline told stories of its valuable treasures, and also horrifying stories. Almost no adventurers dared to venture there for the fabled treasures, knowing full well that the lack of people who escaped there meant its treasure was too much a risk, for they knew dead men told no tales and bones could never enjoy the riches they had in their possession. There had been many battles that were fought, many skirmishes that some would have thought Dralgo's army would lose but came out victorious. One however battle stained the history books pages with red. It was the Battle of Lunar. Dralgo's army had started out with a complex formation for its soldiers. On one side of the plains the army of the Dolyon Empire and on the other side Dralgonan soldiers, secretly split in half with one half visible to the Dolyon forces and the other sneaking up on its flanks. A simple tactic for sure but under F'lorin's guidance, a deadly attack, for he tweaked this tactic just slightly so that if they anticipated even this move, he had archers ready with flaming arrows on both sides of the forest that surrounded the Lunar Plains to engulf his enemy. So a simple flanking tactic became a deadly firestorm that would destroy any who stood against him. F'lorin's tactical mind sometimes scared him, sometimes. The battle had already begun and all was going according to plans, but like any plan it failed. They anticipated F'lorin and his flanking tactic. F'lorin proceeded to send word to one of the others in the Band of Seven who was leading the archers when the Dolyon army suddenly let loose their own flurry of flaming arrows into the forest surrounding the plains. It was a crushing loss for Dralgo not because of how many men they lost, that would be replaced by those seeking vengeance. No it was the blow to their morale that would be hard to repair. For in the attack the member of the Band of Seven who was leading the archers was lost in the attack. His name was J'son Dishul. It was the last battle the Dolyon Empire won, for Dralgonan people grew closer, wanting to exact their vengeance on the Dolyon forces for his death. It was a few years before the Dralgonan forces were successful in pushing the fight into the very courtyard of the capital of the Dolyon Empire. The once powerful armies led by its genius generals were now a dwindled band of nothing more than a few thousand soldiers under the command of the Emperor of Dolyon himself, Emperor Dolyon. The Dralgonan army had surrounded the capital and cut off all supplies being transported into the inner walls. Instead of just waiting until they ran out of provisions they sent in the remaining members of the Band of Seven. Silently and swiftly, they snuck into the inner walls. It is said that a fierce battle took place in the Emperor's palace that night, between the emperor and the six remaining warriors. When the sun rose the next morning, the people who were young then say the six brave warriors were nowhere to be found. All that remained was a piece of parchment and the lifeless body of Emperor Dolyon and his two most trusted, and skilled generals. The only thing that was written on the piece of parchment was one sentence; a sentence that would be written in a stone monument to document the heroics of these men during what would later be known as the Great Divide.

"_**Remember what they stood for, so that you may have a second chance to begin... a second chance at life, may hope guide you to a brighter future."**_


	2. New Beginnings

New Beginnings

Time has passed, ages have come and gone, and history's pages containing the awful events that took place during the Great Divide have become nothing more than a nightmare in the minds of those that lived it. It's a new age that begins now. In the village of Tyuli some unsuspecting person will come to realize there is more to life than what has been given to them. Some unsuspecting person is about to realize their own story is about to unfold.

"Hey Kitan, let's go already. Our master isn't going to be happy if we show up late yet again" an irritated voice said from outside the house.

"Don't worry Gnal; I think that this time, she'll be a little more lenient this time around" another man's voice said from the attic of the house Gnal was standing in front of.

Gnal Dragnil. A youth of Tyuli and burdened with a sad, distraught past. He lost his father at a young age during the Great Divide. A few years after the loss, his mother's health began to deteriorate to the point he thought he would lose her too. With help from others in the village over the next few months they were able to restore her health along with her emotional state of mind as well. From then on his sister, his mother, and himself, became very close, and Gnal became very protective of the others for fear losing either of them. To protect his family from what he could, he took up the art of the spear. A local master who had come to the village when he was younger began to teach the people of the village how to protect themselves. She would end up staying to live there for the next ten years.

"Yeah, then you deal with her when we aren't there on time," Gnal said looking out towards the horizon. The sun had begun to rise. "Great, just great you're telling her why we're late, not me. I wanna see how you get us out of it this time." Like it worked any other time he tried to use his 'charm' he thought to himself annoyed about how the day was already beginning to feel like.

"Just hold on..."

Silence answered his response.

"There the other one is, alright I'm coming down."

There was silence again but it didn't last. As Gnal waited for him to appear at the back door a shadow appeared on the ground and quickly moved above his head. By the time he looked up he saw the last of Kitan's cloak flap past him. He landed a few feet behind him, rolled, and ended standing straight, cloak flapping around him as a morning breeze blew past the two of them.

Kitan Namathorn, like Gnal he too suffered severely when he was but only a child. His parents were remembered as always being a happy, carefree couple who just grew even more joyful when his mother gave birth to him. Unfortunately that's when it took a turn for the worst. As his mother was in labor something went wrong and his father was forced to do what no father ever wishes upon any other. He was forced to choose between his wife, and the child they were trying to bring into this world. When she realized he would not, could not decide which to save, she made the choice for him. With the last of her strength and being exhausted beyond reason she gave one last push. When the priest came to the father carrying the baby, Kitan's father asked when he could see his wife, when would she get better. All the doctor could muster was, 'I'm sorry... we did all that we could do to... make her last moments as peaceful and painless as possible. She told us to tell you... to take good care of him.' Then the doctor leaned in and whispered something into his ear. His father only stood there staring at the ground with a befuddled look on his face. Three years after the death of his mother, during the Great Divide, his father left Kitan in the capable care of Gnal's family, to watch over him after He left to join the fight against the Dolyon forces. From then on Kitan and Gnal were inseparable. They fought, ate, and got into trouble together. When Gnal decided to take up the art of the spear Kitan felt like he was being left out of something, so he too chose the spear. Kitan desperately tried to learn as fast as Gnal but it didn't sit with Kitan. When their master asked him why he wasn't progressing as fast in his training as Gnal he told her that it felt like the weapon was forcing him to do what he wanted it to do. Her answer to his dilemma was to introduce him to his pair of Dual Blades called Hirohira and Byarin. She told him to practice with these, like they were an extension of his own arms. From then on the two of them trained together as well, Kitan with his blades and Gnal with his spear. Months went by and men who had left to fight in the war returned. Unfortunately for Kitan, his father was never seen again. Although everyone in the village believes he died fighting valiantly till the end, Kitan still believes he is still out there. Unable to return to the family he left behind. He vaguely remembers the face of his father but knows that if he were ever to see it again he would be able to tell without a doubt that it was him.

"Show off, now let's go. I wanna see the look on our master's face when she knocks that cocky smile off your face." Gnal said turning away from Kitan and heading towards the place they met their teacher every day they had training. The burned fields just past the northern fences of the village were abandoned. Life sprouted from everywhere around the burned area except where they planted the seeds. To the villagers these fields were known as the 'badlands'.

"Hey wait up" Kitan said jogging up to him. "So Gnal, what do you think Master wants to do with us. She's never called everyone for training on this day since we had just become her students."

"Maybe she has something planned, or maybe she has finally lost it and went senile" Gnal replied muttering things like 'old bat' and 'senile'. He referred to her with those kinds of remarks all the time but he knew Gnal was trying to hide his feelings for her. Master Tin Dall had saved his life once before when Gnal and Kitan had gone 'adventuring' in the mountains around the village. The two of them had been attacked by a bear when she leaped out from nowhere and protected them. From then on he had sort of resented her while at the same time trying to find a way to save her life, so they would be even.

"Come on, when are you gonna just let it be, so she rescued us from a bear when we were little. At some point in time I think Master has saved every villager at one point in time. Hell, she's rescued Colby Garigs yet again yesterday." Kitan said trying to convince Gnal.

"That's different; Garigs is always nearly killing himself. Later that day, even I had to stop him from trying to walk up behind a bull and ride it... in broad daylight no less!" Gnal replied shaking his head, "that guy has a few screws loose if you ask me."

Alright, Gnal had a point.

"Whatever. We should hurry, the sun is halfway up and every minute we aren't there is another reason to expect something bad for us."

The two of them began running to hurry. As the two of them were running past the houses leading to the badlands Kitan had seen something red out of the corner of his eye. He stopped and walked back towards where he thought he saw it. Nothing was there, nothing except a small piece of crimson torn off from something.

"What is it Kitan, whacha find?" Gnal looked at what Kitan held in his hand. "A red piece of cloth, we stopped for that?" Gnal rolled his eyes and put a hand on Kitan's shoulder, "you're losing it man now hurry up we can't afford to be any later than we are."

Kitan looked around a second time then ran to catch up with Gnal. I know I saw something there.

Atop the rooftop a man wearing a crimson cloak mentally cursed himself as he watched the two run off, more importantly the one who carried with him the Catalyst. How could I be so careless? I had finally found the Catalyst and nearly gave myself away with a little piece of my now-ripped cloak. He was going to have to be even more careful when the time came to take the Catalyst, especially after this little mistake. Finally, wouldn't the others be envious of what he had found. How long had he been looking for the Catalyst since the Great Divide? A smile had crept onto his face at some point and forced it to leave as quickly as it had come. He dropped the unconscious body of the man who had spotted him atop the roof. Then as a gust of wind he left as quietly and as swiftly as he had came.

When they reached the site their master was showing the other students something on a dummy of straw they used for target practice. Gnal and Kitan tried to sneak into the back of the group. They quietly tried to tip toe around an abandoned chicken coup but as they were rounding the final corner something shiny flew past Gnal's head. He swiftly pulled his head back, but it was too late. She had seen him somehow.

"Now what would Gnal, and for training purposes a bandit trying to steal from our village, do in this sort of situation? He has lost the art of surprise and is vastly outnumbered. Colby," she said pointing to him, "If it was two to twelve, what would you do?"

He thought about it for a moment then asked more than said, "retreat and get more people?"

"Very good," she said to him. Then to everyone else, "remember this. Rule one: it's better to run to live and fight another day than die in a battle you know is hopeless."

"Gnal, how about you send out Kitan? We both know how he has made you late for our training exercises. Make my punishment easier on yourself."

"Hah you're forgetting about rule two: there is strength in numbers, if Kitan and I split we would be weaker than we are together and would be picked off by the twelve of you." Gnal yelled out so everyone could hear.

"Ahh very good, I have finally taught the two of you something after all. I'm going to have to reward you two for paying attention. What would you like?" She said half taunting half sincere.

Gnal looked to Kitan, and figured it was worth a shot.

"How about a pardon for being late to your training session you're obviously in right now?" Kitan yelled to her not wanting to give away his position right away.

They waited for her response. When the two of them heard the muffled sounds of laughter their stomach felt like knots. Gnal, daring a look around the corner of the coup he saw the other students. He quickly counted how many people he could see. One...two...three...four...five... six...seven...eight...nine...ten...eleven... where was the twelfth person? Who was it? He thought to himself. Then it dawned on him.

"Move, now!" Gnal said pushing Kitan away from himself.

Instantly where they were hiding, a fist had emerged out from the wall. Kitan had rolled as he hit the ground coming to a standing position and drawing his blades. Gnal rolled along his side because when he pushed Kitan he had lost his footing. As the two of them recovered from their master's attempt at injuring one of them, both watched as the debris cloud vanished waiting to see what she would do next.

"Well done, you managed to follow rule three and use it to your advantage" she said taunting the two of them by motioning for both of them to attack.

"Rule three: anticipate your enemy's moves, for battle is like a game. Those that practice it must always respect it." Kitan said lowering his guard slightly to examine the surrounding area. Nothing we could use to our advantage. Heh she sure chose an even playing field. Kitan thought to himself bitterly.

"Gnal, let's show her how we have been training" Kitan yelled to Gnal.

Gnal nodded.

Kitan and Gnal rushed towards each other. Their master readied herself for anything. Gnal used his spear as an extension of his body thrusting from a distance. She dodged his attacks effortlessly. While moving from left to right she never took her eyes off Kitan, who was almost upon her. As he closed the distance between himself and her, Kitan began to zigzag from left to right trying to catch her off guard. Gnal pushed his spear once again at her when in mid thrust she grabbed his spear. He was shocked at her swift movement. She pulled at the spear with all her strength, wrenching him from the ground, into the air, and swung him like a bat being swung; and Kitan was the ball. Gnal flew at Kitan who stopped in mid criss-cross unable to believe she was capable of the feat of strength happening before his eyes, Gnal landed on Kitan with a loud THUD. The two got back to their feet slowly exchanging an alarmed look.

"Did you know she could do that?" Kitan said patting off the dirt from his shoulders and chest.

"Hell no, I just figured she was like every other old windbag" Gnal said rubbing his head, "just walked around barkin orders and yelling outside her house for the neighbors to keep it down."

"Are you two kids worried about losing to an 'old windbag' like me?" she asked mocking Gnal's tone, "than how about you get serious and fight like you mean it! You two wouldn't last a minute when I was—-" she stopped, clenching her fist until she relaxed and that calm, far-off gaze had returned to her face. It was like looking at a stone sculpture.

"You want us to fight you for real? There's no way that you would win against us. Its two on one, no matter how much upper body strength you got, we would beat you to a bloody pulp" Gnal said smiling confidently.

"Oh, if that's how you feel than how about we make a little wager on this match of ours" she turned to the others who had been watching the fight unfold in front of them. "If they can draw blood you will be taught by my new private apprentices." She turned back to face Gnal and Kitan, "and if you can do that your first private lessons would be given to you tomorrow."

"And if we lose?" Kitan asked fearful of the consequences.

"Then you have to be the first ones here, when we have scheduled training exercises. This way you at least learn how to be on time." She said watching their faces, waiting patiently for how the two of them react.

"That's it? Alright then, let's do this!" Gnal said grabbing his spear from the ground nearby and once again rushing towards her.

Kitan yelled to him to wait and think up a plan but as Kitan knew, once Gnal got behind something he wouldn't stop until he was either knocked out or he was victorious. So Kitan grabbed Hirohira and Byarin then followed Gnal's lead. Gnal was already halfway there when their master sprinted towards Gnal. Within minutes she had reached him, this time taking a move out of Kitan's book. She zigzagged towards him. He countered this by once again trying to thrust his spear towards her. She smiled as he missed but it quickly vanished when he turned it in mid thrust so the blade came dangerously close to her neck. She immediately stopped, rolled to her side, and put a few feet between them. Kitan had caught up then and instead of stopping to berate Gnal about not thinking things through, he continued to rush her. She didn't dare to move closer for fear of Gnal using that spear of his and drawing her blood. She would never be able to live it down if these two egotistical brats beat her at her own game. Using the rage that flowed through her with those thoughts, she pulled out a small dagger hidden between her belt and the small of her back. She flung it directly at Kitan's left leg. He did a kind of double bound on one leg to avoid it. As he just landing from the second hop he noticed the blade was resuming its attack. Is the blade alive, Kitan thought as he dodged it again. He continued to keep himself from getting cut by backing away. The blade stopped coming after him when he was backed to where Gnal was.

"Alright so going at her as two people won't work, what now" Gnal asked watching the blade move from side to side without ever coming back to her hand. Kitan was watching it too. He noticed a slight twitch in her hands as the blade went from left to right.

"That's it! Alright I got her figured out now. Gnal," Kitan said not daring to tear his gaze from their master. "She has a thin strand of something attached to the handle of the hilt. That's how she is making it look like it's got a mind of its own."

"So if we cut the strand while it's coming after one of us... that would leave her open for a few seconds" Gnal said understanding the situation.

"You go around, I will charge in like I just did and try to get her attention. When she tosses the dagger at me and I cut the string she won't have a weapon and will be defenseless for a few seconds."

"Let's do this, I wanna see her when she finally loses at something" Gnal said with an evil smile on his face.

They nodded and the two set off to set the plan in motion. Kitan rushed forward again, a blade in each hand. Gnal waited and ran behind him. When she threw the dagger at the two of them Gnal immediately ran to the side and around to her back side. As predicted the blade turned instantly in mid-air and headed towards Gnal. Kitan had leaped into the air, using the sun's glare as a way to hide his location. He swooped down and sliced both his blades directly down towards the hilt of the dagger. The blade stopped and dropped towards the ground, lifeless. Gnal used that as his cue to attack. Gnal swiped his spear down towards the base of her feet to force her to move where he wanted. She had gone from calm master to furious puppet. She wasn't able to get foot hold in the fight, and it pissed her off. These little brats are doing what it took...

"I'm grateful. You being able to fight on par with me, it just means you two were actually paying attention to what I had been trying to teach you. Let's see if can take me on while I am being serious" with that final comment she smiled. Gnal, furious that she would mock them even at a time like this, struck out with an uncontrollable force he had never shown. Her smile instantly vanished as she sped up her movements to stay away from his deadly spear point. Kitan was aware of this fury he was showing, for he had been there the last time he unleashed this raw power. He had to stop this before it got out of control. Like it could get any worse Kitan thought fearfully. Then he remembered how he became this way the first time. A shiver ran down his spine as he was about to assault his master with his weapons. She was parrying them both very well. He was amazed; neither Gnal nor he could land a successful blow on her. He would have to use the technique he had been training to perfect all fall.

Gnal, this is for your own good. He thought as if what he was saying in his head would be telepathically sent to his dear friend.

Kitan changed who he was going to attack. He feinted like he was going to strike her when right before he made contact; Kitan spun around her and thrust the butt of his hilt into Gnal's chest. Gnal looked him right in the eyes, as if his strike had no affect at all. Those eyes had an evil, malicious, look to them. Then Gnal's eyes rolled into the back of his head as he fell backwards, unconscious.

"Thank you Kitan. You executed those moves flawlessly" she said to him trying to regain her composure, "when he wakes up tell him that he won. He will become my apprentice for that move that struck--."

"He's not the only one to get the reward," Kitan said interrupting her, pointing to her lower left calf, "I may have cut you as I spun around you to protect you from Gnal. From the look on your face I can see you weren't expecting to have to train the both of us."

She traced a finger along the back of her left calf. She didn't have to see it, she could feel it. He was right. He used his own ally for his own personal gain; he was planning his moves even before he had a chance to initiate them. These two might just have what it takes, they might be ready by the time the event is set to begin she thought as she began brainstorming her schedule. She knew she had to get a little more time so she did the only thing that came natural to her.

She looked at Gnal lying unconscious behind Kitan, still gripping his spear, then turned her gaze to Kitan and smiled. "Don't worry this will only hurt for a second." Swiftly she lunged at him and kicked him square in his chest. He was caught completely off guard. His lungs felt like they had been turned inside out and all the air he had was released. He fell to his knees, his vision blurry now as he looked up into the face of his master; of the one who was smiling down at him.

"Still conscious I see? That's gonna suck for you now. Should have blacked out when you could have" she shook her head and punched him straight in his jaw. The force behind it caused him to finally black out. The last thought that entered and left his head was, what a great way... for a new beginning.


	3. Trials of the Wise

Kitan woke up, yelling and feeling the side of his head.

_that woman has a rock for a fist!_ he thought feeling the blood returning to his skull.

As his vision returned to normal he decided to look around and check out his surroundings. he was lying on a feather-stuffed bed in a house. When he looked towards the window he noticed Gnal laying on a similar bed. Gnal was still sleeping even though mere moments ago he had woke up screaming. He looked out the window and saw the building thetwo of them were in was on a hill. He realized he was in the house of the village healer, Ruwanda. Her family has been

making sure the people of the village were healthy since Kitan can remember. Ruwanda wasn't in right now, he figured she was making her rounds and teaching her little sister thefamily trade. Kitan decided to get up and have a look around until either she returned or Gnal woke up. He hadn't made it even five steps when Gnal sat straight up and reached forsomething that wasn't there, then lay back down. Kitan saw Gnal's eyes were still closed.

Is he moving in his sleep? only one way to find out, Kitan thought to himself.

Kitan moved cautiously towards Gnal. He was standing to the side of Gnal's bed when he felt his stomach rumble. Gnal suddenly shot up and yelled, "No! That's my chicken pot pie!" then laid back down. Kitan just smiled to himself and returned to looking around. Inside the room was the two beds and next to

each was a dresser. On the dresser next to the bed he was on was his bag. He just figured one of the other students had brought it, along with Gnal's bag. It was about an hour after He had woken up when the door opened. Ruwanda's little sister Malinda, had run inside to greet Kitan, who was now sitting

on the bed writing in his notepad he had dug out of his bag. Ruwanda was a couple paces behind.

"Hewo mister, you wook happy, are you feewing better?" she asked trying to sound like her older sister.

"I am fine. My friend and I are grateful for such great care you have given us."

"It wasn't just me but my big sis too, she did most of the wapping up."

Kitan looked to Ruwanda, he smiled and said his thanks. Kitan returned his notepad back to his pouch on the side of his bag.

"When were we brought in?"

"Early this morning, about an hour or two after sunrise. I had just woken up an opened the door to make my rounds when I nearly tripped over your two bodies. I must say this time I actually thought you WERE dead!" she said shaking her head.

She was fixing a cup of tea for him when she stopped and turned with a letter in her hand, "when you were brought by one of the other students they gave me this letter. He said to give this to them when they wake up."

She handed the letter to him and glanced over at Gnal, he was still sleeping but now chewing on his pillow and mumbling something about how good his pot pie was. He opened the letter and began reading.

_**To my idiotic students;**_

_**You morons were lucky. I must have had a cold today to have**_

_**been able to get cut by you two I mean come on you two never**_

_**show up on time, never showed any enthusiasm in my teachings**_

_**and....**_

Kitan decided to skim past all the berating comments.

_**...but I will stand by my word. If you two morons can move**_

_**fast enough to make it to my house, you remember where it**_

_**is? just think back to the last time I caught you trying to**_

_**give me my own 'lesson'.**_

_**oh and be here by sunset tonight or the deals off. Try not**_

_**to let your little boo-boo's stop you.**_

Kitan crumpled up the letter and threw it in the fireplace, even though it wasn't lit he wanted it out of his mind when he got back. Kitan got his stuff together and tossed Gnal's stuff at him, waking him up. He was mumbling again about some kind of food.

"Who the hell took...OW!" Gnal was clutching his chest, the memory of the fight was returning to him. "Why did you do that? I had her right-"

"I'll explain later, but we gotta go now if we are going to get a chance at her again."

While Gnal was getting his stuff together Kitan was getting him up to speed on what happened while he was out. He decided it was best to not tell him what he did while he was asleep.

"Alright! I'm gonna make that old windbag pay. Thanks again Ruwanda, and of course Malinda." She just hid behind her sister and giggled.

"The fastest way to her house is along the mountain trail remember, she lived outside of the village next to the waterfall."

Kitan nodded and the two of them set out. As they were nearing the entrance to the village Gnal's little sister came running up to them. Gnal motioned for him to continue and he'd catch up once he finished. Kitan went on ahead. It was a few moments but Gnal came jogging up to join him.

"So you work everything out?"

"Yeah she was just worried when I didn't show up for lunch, oh here this is for you from her" he handed him a box filled with food.

"So we have till sunset to get there?" Kitan nodded, "that's too long, you know she will have a few surprises along the way right?"

Kitan nodded again and said, "Rule four: A trap forseen is another day lived."

The two had left the outer edges of the village and were just rounding the last hill before the beginning of the mountain trail. Kitan looked up and saw the sun was sitting just above a distant hill.

"If we are going to get there in time we are going to speed it up, after we take a break." Gnal was about to argue but Kitan continued, "unlike you who was taken down by me, I took the full force of Master's fist. I think a couple of my ribs are broken and a couple are bruised." Kitan couldn't hold it this time and coughed up blood.

"Damn, Kitan couldn't you have told me this before we set out? I could have carried a little more of the supplies."

"No I couldn't do that to you, I didn't-"

"No this is going to hurt us even more, she's going to take advantage of that and when she does..." Gnal said interrupting him. After a few moments of quiet he spoke again, but calmer.

"I have a plan...if she tries to take you out first but its gonna be tricky. I can explain it to you on the way. We don't have enough time so lets get you bandaged up and we'll have to jog the rest of the way."

Gnal helped Kitan bandage his mid section up so he had some sort of support to help with his ribs. Once he was bandaged, they sat and rested while eating the lunch Gnal's sister made for them.

"So, what do you think the old windbag has planned for our 'private' training?" Gnal said munching on what was left of a sandwich.

"I don't know... and why don't you ever refer to her by her title? it's disrespectful." Kitan said shaking his head finishing his food.

"I won't show her respect until I beat her, when the student surpasses the teacher." Gnal said not caring if some of his hatred seeped into his words.

Kitan chose to sit quietly and not respond. Gnal's anger was just for show and Kitan knew that. He hated not being able to protect himself or those close to him. When he was saved that day it sparked something in him. Kitan wondered how long this spark would keep him going before...

"Lets go we have to jog the rest it'll be sunset soon and we wont be able to judge how much time we will have once we are further in on the path to her place."

Gnal and Kitan gathered their stuff and began jogging up the trail. Every now and then they would trip traps she set to catch her food or the occasional bandit who decided to hide out until it was safe. It felt like hours had passed before the trail began to widen.

"It looks like we're getting closer, be careful I know she's going to try to pull--"

"You moron, with a voice like that, even the village idiot

could sneak up on you and you wouldn't even have a chance."

The familiar voice of their master came not from before them but from behind them.

Gnal whirled around and struck wildly with his spear into any nearby bushes within his reach.

"Yes because stabbing randomly is the obvious choice of tactics here." She said sarcastically, taunting him.

She knew about his hatred for her and was using that against him. Kitan had to bring their game to an end. Kitan drew his blades and tried to pin point where she was. He focused hard but couldn't tell where she was. He had to admit when she didn't want to be found she REALLY didn't want to be found.

He decided to take a page out of Gnal's book. He also began to stab randomly into areas around them.

"I thought you'd come up with something better than that Kitan. I obviously have my work cut out for me getting you two morons ready."

Kitan wondered what she meant by that, getting us ready... A small object shot out a tree to Kitan's left. He easily knocked it away with Hirohira, but as soon as he knocked it away another two objects shot towards them from two different sides. Kitan and Gnal switched to defending themselves until they could find a break between objects. Unfortunately they weren't fast enough. For every object that didn't hit them, two did. The barrage felt endless.

"We have to go on the offensive! I am tired of being pelted by these damn pebbles!" Gnal shouted to Kitan.

"You don't think I know that!" Kitan retaliated, "you don't think I feel the same way, how do we go on the offensive when she has us pinned?!"

As if to taunt them further the pebbles ceased. Keeping their guard up they swiftly moved to a wider, less covered area. As they moved every few seconds a pebble would shoot towards them. It was easily avoided but Kitan felt like it was part of her plan. He had the odd feeling of being like a cow being herded to the pen. The trail ended abruptly leaving them standing facing a small open area with a waterfall in front of them a few yards away and her house to the side of the waterfall.

"Alright now she has to come at us from behind us or from somewhere we can see her" Gnal said, "ya hear that ya old windbag, come get the poundin you deserve from me!"

_Sometimes you can be oblivious Gnal_, Kitan thought to himself.

"Master, why are you doing this? you told us to be here before sunset and we did, the sun...." Kitan started to say and then thought about what was happening. _She said to be here before sunset so we could have a fighting chance, so we could see our attacker... this is it... _He thought trying to comprehend her strategy, then it hit him and he realized what she was doing. She's testing us.

"Gnal shes testing..." Kitan started to say to Gnal but he had already figured it out, he was trying to use her own tactic against her. He was always faster than Kitan at analyzing the situation. Gnal was using his spear to hit pebbles the way they came and was shouting insults.

"Ah, so you two already knew what I was trying to do huh?" She stepped out from behind a tree to the side of them.

Kitan didn't even hear any rustle of leaves or breaking of twigs. Gnal just cursed under his breath. and smacked a pebble at her. She caught it with her open hand and crushed it.

_What did she do before she came to the village_, Kitan thought seriously to himself.

"Today's lesson is over, tomorrows will be a little tougher" she said walking past them dropping her handful of pebbles. One actually looked to be a fairly large rock. Kitan was grateful she decided to stop when she did. He didn't want to imagine what could have happened. "so in order for you two morons to handle the strain I want you both to put your stuff in the house and go wash under the waterfall, if you want you can think of it as meditation."

she made a face and sniffed the air around Gnal. He tried to push her away but she twisted his arm and used the momentum to pull him to the ground, slowly putting pressure on his twisted arm. "but actually you just smell like failure. Lets see if I can change that after I get done with you."

She let go of him and walked casually to her house. Once inside Gnal grabbed his stuff and followed her, grumbling curses he didn't think were possible. Kitan looked towards the top of the waterfall and saw the last rays of sunlight shooting over. He picked up his stuff but it became hard for him to breathe. Gnal was just opening the door when he saw Kitan struggling. He rushed over to him, shouting.

"Hey, windbag, help! Kitan's hurt from earlier this morning, and he can't breathe!"

Their master was there in moments, lifting him effortlessly and rushing him to the waterfall. All Kitan could see orhear was the soft pounding of his heart as its beat went from speedy to a soft pound every few seconds, and the way she looked as she rushed him to the waterfall. It was theonly time he had ever seen such fear in her face, she lookedolder than he remembered. He suddenly felt the ice-coldwater as it splashed across his entire body. Now he was alittle afraid she had lost her mind and decided to drown himunder the falling water. Gnal was close behind trying tohelp him escape from her iron clad grip. With a single sweepof her leg she kept him at bay as she stood under the waterholding Kitan's body. After a few moments under, she walkedout and laid him on the ground. Kitan spat out what water heswallowed.

"What the hell are you trying to do?!" Kitan said getting to his feet, "first you say your going to give us special training, then you chuck rocks at us for fun, then you try to drown me?I think Gnal's right, your nuts!"

"You moron your worse than your other, more idiotic side. How do you feel? hows your breathing?" She said waiting until it dawned on him and then walked back inside.

"Kitan! You alright?" Gnal said rushing over to him just in case, "How you feeling? Do your ribs hurt?" Gnal asked

question after question.

Kitan didn't answer any of them. He was still trying tofigure out what just happened himself. Gnal grabbed Kitan's stuff and told him to stay there and relax while he put hisstuff in the house. He didn't want him to strain himself incase the pain came back. Standing, he just stared at thewaterfall.

_Too many questions_, he thought to himself, _Too many_

_answers needed._


	4. Last Wishes

"Wake up you morons, your pathetically lazy existence ended last night." A harsh voice said. Their master was standing over Gnal at the moment.

"Go away you, GAH!" Gnal was saying as she flipped his cot over. "What the hell was that for, I was getting up!"

"You weren't fast enough" She said moving towards Kitan.

Kitan was a light sleeper and was woken up by Gnal. He was faking still being asleep waiting for her to try the same but instead she just leaned in, her mouth hoving over his ear.

"At least your trying. maybe there is hope for at least one of my moronic students" and then left the room.

The day went by slowly. Once they were dressed and got their things, they ate and left the house. Immediately they were attacked. They didn't have time to defend themselves. Once they the attack stopped they heard the voice they were coming to hate.

"I guess I was wrong about you" She said dropping out of a tree behind the house. "This is going to take longer than I thought, I guess I am going to have to increase the training I had planned for you two."

Gnal leaned in close to Kitan and said "One of these days I am going to beat that woman into the-" but he stopped and covered his forehead as she had flicked a small pebble at his head.

"Damn, I was aiming for between his eyes. I must be getting old." She said to herself while shaking her head.

As she walked over to them Kitan decided to check out what she had on her person, see if he could use anything she had against her. She had her hair up today in bun with two small knives through the bun. She wore a slightly longer, light green short sleeve tunic that ended just before her elbows. _That would help her blend in with the environment _Kitan thought to himself. She had on her typical training pants that had several patches up both legs in different spots. Some patches were different colors from the pants. It would be a long shot but he could try and look for it if she did decide to try and hide, _but she probably already knew that and would be ready for _that he thought once more to himself. She had two knives, one on both sides of her belt and two more, one on the outer side of each leg. _She was well equipped for just training _he thought. She had reached them and Kitan was angry with himself as he didn't find anything he could use to help get the advantage.

"I have six months to get you two moronic weaklings, and turn you into somewhat intelligent weaklings. From this day on you are no longer people of Tyuli. You are wanderers who travel together" She said taking a pause to lock both gazes in turn, making sure they understood what she was getting at. "The lives you lived are no longer yours, They are mine to use as I see fit. Think of yourselves as an extension of me." She looked towards Kitan, "think of yourself Kitan, as my arms. Your fast and agile but if you have little strength then it doesn't matter how many times you try and punch someone." She looked at Gnal, "Gnal think of yourself as my legs and head. Your stamina lets you go far past your limits and your reaction time to your opponents attacks are amazing, but its useless if you have nothing to harness those attributes."

She smiled and with a quick flick of her wrist, she shot two more pebbles at them. They were ready for that and caught them. She continued to smile but Kitan could swear it grew more malicious. The first month of the six month training program was very strenuous on them. To 'ease them into what she had in mind, she started out by getting them used to working under heavier conditions. She had them strap a large boulder onto their backs and everyday go down the trail to the bottom and back up to the house. They were to do this until they could run with ease still carrying the boulder on their backs. Gnal adjusted to the weight faster than Kitan and once they both were able to do as she required She came to them.

"Good, your bodies are learning to work under more stress then they were meant for. Call it a night and tomorrow be prepared, we are going to spar. I want to see how you morons are progressing. I wouldn't want you to feel cheated so we will switch roles. I will wear a boulder and you can attack me. If you can take me down then my training has done you well, and I will tell you the reason behind what I do."

The two exchanged glances and unstrapped the boulders. That night, after getting some food in their stomachs the two of them sharpened their weapons and swapt battle strategies for tomorrows fight.

"Alright how about this" Gnal began "I will rig some traps tonight that she can trip, a few sharpened sticks as makeshift arrows, maybe a couple small pitfalls to keep her off-balanced. With that boulder on her back the traps would give us a small advantage, whadya think?"

Kitan though it over. _It would help us get an edge, however slim that would be he _thought to himself trying to look at the fight tomorrow from every angle.

"The boulder and the traps, they would only hinder her for a few minutes and we both know that. If we are to take her out we have to strike hard and fast" Kitan said to Gnal

imagining how the fight would go in his head. The two spent the night preparing themselves for the match making sure to get some sleep. they didn't want to plan out all this to let it fail because they couldn't stay awake. Morning came and to their surprise they didn't get woken up as they had some of the days over the last month. Kitan cautiously looked out the window to see their master on top of a boulder, legs crossed and facing the waterfall. They got their things together and went outside.

"Alright ya old hag be ready cause your gonna taste dirt today!" Gnal said trying to taunt her.

She didn't say anything, didn't even move. Gnal was feeling impatient, Kitan didn't have to look at him to know he was itching to get things going. Kitan was feeling anxious as well, that surprised him.

Their master got up then and back flipped off the rock and faced them. "Are my students ready for their first failure?" She said

strapping the boulder she was just on to her back. Kitan and Gnal just nodded.

"Good at least your learning to act smart, lets see if you can do more than act."

Without missing a beat she rushed towards them. She wasn't even a little bit slower with the handicap. Kitan was barely able to move away from the punch she threw at him. Immediately after she threw the punch at Kitan she sidestepped towards Gnal and sent a kick towards his head. Gnal moved slightly to his left and went on the offensive. Just as they planned. Kitan tossed a small Knife at a tree with a rope wrapped around it as Gnal kept her preoccupied. As the rope was cut it in turn let loose a flurry of sharpened sticks. She heard the rope being cut and instinctively jumped to the right. Gnal smiled and stabbed his spear not at her but at the ground as she landed. The ground collapsed underneath her and with cat like reflexes she kicked off the wall of the small pit and flipped over the thrust of Gnal's spear. Kitan didn't wait for her to turn the fight. He slashed along the ground and cut a rope hidden in the dirt. The rope let loose two logs on either side of their master. She smiled, and instead of jumping out of the way she grabbed Gnal's spear and pulled him in the cross fire. Kitan stopped following the plan and rushed in to save Gnal. She thought otherwise. The logs were getting closer as they fell like a pendulum of death. Gnal was struggling with their master as Kitan was trying to break them apart.

_I'm not gonna make it, damn I need to go faster _Kitan thought to himself in desperation.

SLAM, The logs came together and a dust cloud of dirt and debris flew in all directions. Kitan came to a stop and, with his guard still up he tried to look for any sign ofwhat happened.

"Gnal! Master!"

"Moron. You really expect simple tricks and traps to work on people of my caliber and skill?"

Their master was standing in front of the two logs with Gnal over one shoulder.

"I have to admit in one month you have been able to come from attacking head on regardless of plan to attacking your opponent from every angle and thinking moves ahead of them...well, almost any opponent." She said smiling at her own compliment.

She tossed his unconscious body to the floor and walked towards the house. Over her shoulder she said, "When he wakes up tell him the two of you begin your next training excercise tomorrow."

Kitan didn't know if she was saying it to him but quietly as if to whisper, she said, "but its still too soon."

Gnal came to the next morning and once again grumbled his complaints. Kitan ignored it and gave him the message. Gnal rolled his eyes and the two of them resumed their training with a new passion. The second month of their training was nothing more than her enjoyment. She had them spar against each other with just their bare hands. The reason she gave them was that in war a general and his troops must be like one. One must act according to the others wishes without speech, lest the battle be lost. It was a painful and arduous month. Every morning they would spar against each other until they could read each others movements blindfolded. When they first put on the blindfold, the two of them hardly made contact. Gnal fell into the water a few times the first week and Kitan ran into a tree, and tripped over himself quite a bit, but they refused to quit. After about the second week of blindly fighting they were finally getting it.

"Ha, gotcha!" Gnal shouted as he attempted to punch Kitan.

Kitan moved slightly to avoid his punch and retaliated with one of his own. Gnal countered by grabbing his fist then tried to kick Kitan. Kitan used his free hand to grab his leg. They were in a stalemate, each was feeling the others mind through their movements. Kitan could feel Gnal's leg stiffen, he was getting ready to strike. Gnal twisted and tried to punch with his free hand. Kitan was forced to let go of his leg. Gnal rolled away and got to his feet. Kitan was sure their master was watching them with those eyes ofhers. Every time he moved, every time Gnal attacked he knew her eyes were on them. It sent shivers up his spine.

"Quit dawdling and get to the bashing of each others brains!" She yelled to them laughing to herself. She had a few drinks while watching them spar. Kitan was beginning to get annoyed with the way she was acting. Even Kitan could only ignore her behavior for so long. Kitan grabbed the knife off his side and threw it where he heard her voice. He knew it wouldn't hit, he just wanted to shut her up for a little bit. It was odd, He hadn't heard anything from Gnal. No outburst or growl. Not even a mutter. _Wait, what was Gnal doing while he was focusing on her?_ He thought cautiously to himself. He felt a quick breeze on his left, he quickly moved to his right. Nothing. He was getting jumpy, he couldn't have that. Another breeze on his left. This time he waited for something to hit him. Still nothing. He was surprised at how Gnal was changing. A few months ago he would charge in and focus on pounding his fist into his opponent, now he is trying his hand at playing mind was scary how much he had changed.

"Stop you two, that's it for today. Go get some food and rest. You morons are progressing nicely. I have something I would like to share with you tonight." She said walking off into a thick group of trees.

He wondered where she was going, but he dismissed the thought. They each pulled off their blindfolds and looked at each other, sharing a puzzled look.

"Whatever, if the windbag's eyes are hurting and her body is aching I guess I have to stop."

Kitan smiled. No matter how much physically he grew, Gnal would always act the same. He took solace in that and went inside. That night Gnal and Kitan were laying on their beds quietly listening to the sounds outside. The hoots of the owls, the chirping crickets. Kitan slipped into his memories during the silence. He went back to the only memory of his parents. Only pleasant one. His father had taken him into the very mountains he is in now twelve years ago, when he was just turning seven. It was early in the morning and he was still waking up. His father, a tall muscular man, was trying to teach him how to properly string a bow. He remembered a figure off in the distance and his father saying it was a fine deer.

"Kitan, hey Kitan!" Gnal was saying, "I was asking you where do you think she goes, you know sometimes after our sparring matches."

_Why did I decide to remember that?_ Kitan thought to himself.

"I don't know" Kitan replied, both to Gnal and to his own thoughts.

"Lets go find her, see what she wants to tell us."

Gnal breathed deeply and let out a long, deep sigh. "Fine."

Suddenly a scream tore through the silence.

"Master" they both yelled realizing who it was.

They sprinted into the woods surrounding the house. It was silent once again. They needed to find her fast, hearing her scream....Kitan shuddered to think who or what could do that to a woman like her. It was dark out, Kitan couldn't see anything. They needed to find her.

"Gnal we have to--"

"I'll go this way, you check over there" Gnal said clenching his fists. Kitan swore he could hear Gnal say then, "You windbag you better not die until I have a chance to knock you around a bit."

Kitan nodded and went to look. Kitan searched but all he was finding was owls, deers, and the little creatures of the night. He was losing time and light, he desperately needed to find felt like all of eternity was passing him as he stood still.

"MASTER!" Kitan shouted

"scared little pupil" A mans voice said.

Kitan looked around but couldn't find where it was coming from. He drew His blades and stood his ground. Silence, at the moment it made his skin crawl.

"Your friend would be ashamed of how weak you are."

Gnal's name flashed through his mind.

"What did you do to Gnal!"

He felt the mans breath on the back of his neck. He couldn't move. All he could do was stand there feeling like a puppet who had its strings cut.

"Your pathetic. I can't believe someone like you is an interest in her eyes. What are you hiding from me?" He said.

He felt a sudden sharp pain in his side. The shock seemed to bring his body back under his control. He quickly turned and slashed as he rolled away. He felt nothing under his blade. This man was like nothing he had seen, just smiling there like that.

"So there is still fight in you after all, good I wouldn't want to kill you without some sort of fun for me" He said drawing his blade.

His weapon wasn't very ornate. It was a simple curved blade with a hilt. The only thing he could see that stood out on this man was tied to the hilt, a small pendant in the shape of a crescent moon.

"Whats your plan for coming out here? Tell me where my master is!" Kitan said beginning to become frustrated. He could feel blood flowing slowly along his side.

"In due time, Fatalis ab pugnator" He said.

_What does that mean?_ Kitan thought to himself.

Gnal and their master suddenly erupted out from eiter side of this man. He moved so fluidly dodging their initial attacks. His skill was frightening. Gnal jumped into the air and thrust his spear downward as their master attacked him from the ground. This man had the audacity to smile as he dodged their master once again. Kitan and this man locked gazes in a brief moment, and it was then he knew what was about to happen. Gnal was just richoceting off a tree to give him more speed to attack when the man twisted his blade in his hand. Gnal didn't see it coming. Gnal slashed with his spear, the man feinted, moving closer to him.

"Gnal!"

Gnal had stopped moving. The man and Gnal were standing face to face. Neither attacking the other.

"Damn, I didn't see..." the man said as he struggled to back away. He was clutching his chest. Gnal was just standing there, on his face a lifeless gaze staring at everything and nothing.

"I wasted...too much time here....till next time... Fatalis ab pugnator" he said and then vanished under the cover of the trees and the darkness of night.

Kitan rushed over to Gnal as he fell to his knees. Kitan gathered him into his arms. He knew Gnal wouldn't last much longer. They were too far from the village and the wound was too deep, he was losing too much blood. Their master got to her feet and walked over to them.

"Hand him over, the least I can do--"

"Shut...you wind..." Gnal struggled to say coughing blood, "I'm not... gonna die until I pound--"

"The waterfall, get him to the water it will do the same for him as it did for me!" Kitan interrupting Gnal. He recalled how he felt after letting the water wash over him,

"It wont do any good. The water wont do the same for such a wound... all we can do is try to ease the pain. I am truly sorry."

Kitan felt numb, he couldn't believe what he was hearing. Gnal couldn't die, who would watch his back if he... Kitan felt Gnal cough again and didn't know what to do.

"Live...live and..get....him...."Gnal said letting his last breath out. his eyes looking through Kitan. Kitan let out a beastly howl venting his anger into the night sky. Nothing came after he went quiet.

"Kitan, lets give him the respect he deserves, to die in battle is honorable."

The two of them spent the rest of the night digging his grave. Once they were finished Kitan himself put his body in the grave. He stood there until daybreak when his master came up behind him.

"Kitan, Gnal is gone. You must leave and fulfill Gnal's Last request, I know where the man will go, only too well" She said handing him a map and his already packed things, "go out. You were meant for more than living a simple life in Tyuli."

Kitan didn't know what he was hearing. "Where would I go? How am I supposed to..."

"Go here" she pointed to a spot on the map, "go...you moron, waste no more time here. I will deal with his family don't worry about that. Just promise me you will avenge him and return my last real student to me, to take over."

Kitan looked towards the grave, with Gnal's spear standing as a memorial. "Only death would stop me."


	5. Stolen Path

_**Stolen Path**_

Michael and the man who had stolen his money just a few minutes ago weaved their way back through town. He kept an eye on him, but more because he wanted to know what and who this man was to catch the interest of his master. There was no other way he could think of so he just asked him.

"You see, I had just liberated koins from her as she walked past the front guards, I tell ya those two are worthless for protection, but anyway I hadn't gotten a foot away from her when she grabs my arm, looks me in the eyes and says to me 'your arm still has uses so I won't rip it off. Instead I want you to do something, something only a rat can do' a month later you show up. Though I was kinda hopin not to have to do what she told me." The man said grudgingly.

"What did she want from you?"

"First; she wanted me to get a room, which I have done. Second floor, third room on the right is where we'll be staying. Secondly; she told me to be your guide. At least until you reach Dralgo. If you ask me though the second thing is something I doubt either of us want so I will just point you in the right direction" the man stepped outside looking towards the south end of the plaza. "Take that route there; follow the path for about three days, though it depends on how bad you want to get there. Now that the second part of our deal is done I will-"

"No it's not. She said for you to guide me to Dralgo, I intend to make sure the both of us are there… However horrible the next few days will be for both of us I will make sure you keep your end." Kitan pushed the man into the building and quickly snatched his wallet. His reaction told him it was valuable. "You will get this back when I am in Dralgo. Until then I will need to know your name, calling you by the name thief may cause complications for me."

The man eyed the pouch but shifted his gaze to Kitan and made an extravagant bow. "I am the humble keeper of equality, Axel Minitil."

Kitan rolled his eyes and replied "Don't try to sweeten what you do. You steal from people new to this place. You feign honorable intentions and care only about yourself." Kitan pushed past Axel and up the stairs. He made sure to keep a tight grip on the money pouch. "Why does this mean so much to you; your skills are impressive enough where it would only take a few days to get this back. Why does it mean so much?"

Axel was following him and when he heard Kitan's words he slowed and eventually stopped in the doorway. "It was my mother's… before the Great Divide she used to make things and sell them in the market place. When this town was overrun by the Dolyon Empire's troops. She was killed. It's all I have of her."

Kitan held it up and looked at it in a new light. He sighed and tossed it back to Axel.

He heard Axel laughing. "Man you are gullible! I can't believe you fell for a story like that."

Kitan shook his head and muttered to himself "Once a thief always a thief. I will hold you to your word or I will turn you in right now."

Axel nodded "Yeah yeah." He looked out the window. The sun was near to almost gone. "Go ahead and get some rest, I have ordered our food to come to the room so no worries." Kitan saw him lay down on the bed next to him. "Don't worry I may be a thief but I am the best thief you'll ever find, so I wont skip out on our deal." Kitan took that as what it was and relaxed. Kitan went outside and finished up getting what he needed for the trip. He got supplies enough for two people. It left him very little money and he decided when he got there he would find a way to get what was needed to enter the tournament. Kitan made his way back to the inn and back to Axel. On his way he passed the fountain he saw when he first arrived. A woman was sitting there, painting on something. He decided to not scare her so he walked up to her and still from a distance he waved and said hello. She was too engrossed in her painting to notice him. He continued walking towards her. He reached her after a few moments and stood in front of her. He looked over the top of the canvas and saw what she was painting. It was magnificent. The fountain was surrounded by animals, all grazing. Above there were birds of many kinds. Ones he had never seen before.

"You're very good ma'am, have you been doing this long?" Kitan said amazed at what he was looking at.

It must have startled her because she dropped the brush and looked up at him. His words being sorted through in her head. She recovered; blushing at his words. She picked up her brush and put it aside. "Thank you sire. I have been doing this for a few years." She looked back up to him and smiled. "My name is Jade. Jade Nichols and yours?" She asked rising from her seat.

He returned the smile and took her hand, kissing the back as he bowed. "Namathorn, Kitan Namathorn. Do you always do scenery paintings?" He asked, both of them sitting down. He sat in front of the canvas but on the side of the fountain wall. She took her place as she was before.

She shook her head replying "No I have tested my skills in painting people as well. That is what I do best. Scenery things like this are just a hobby of mine." She squinted at him and he wondered if he had something on his face. He was about to ask when she spoke. "Would you mind? Sitting in for me to paint? I like to draw new people I meet so I have something to remember them by."

He nodded and positioned himself the way she wanted. "Just sit there and be casual looking. It shouldn't take too long. I just have to get the outline of your body and then I can fill it in as I see." He nodded again and she began. She instructed him to look at her, and he did. She went to work and remained silent for a good amount of time. As Kitan sat there looking at her he began to notice things. Her hair, an auburn color; like that of a tree's leaves in the fall. Her eyes were the color of the sky in the mid afternoon. When she smiled at him he noticed she had a dimple only on her left cheek. It made him smile as well and she softly instructed him to smooth his face. He removed the smile and she resumed her work. She began to look at him less and less as time went on and eventually stopped looking at him entirely. He didn't know if she was done or not so he didn't move. Jade's hand was moving with a quickness of that of a professional. Kitan noticed what she had for belongings on the ground in between her feet. It was just a small bag with a blanket sticking out and a few knives. _She must be a travelling artist and must be able to protect herself_. Kitan thought to himself.

"Done, you can relax now, thank you Kitan. So what do you think?" Jade asked turning the canvas to him.

The painting was very well indeed. Almost life like to him. He replied "Wow, I can see why you are so good. It looks like I am staring into a mirror. Do you travel and do this for nobles?"

She gave him a slight shake of her head, thought about it, then nodded. She added "I don't just do it for noble families. I travel from place to place doing it for whoever catches my eye. Here it was you." He blushed and it made her laugh. "Forgive me I didn't mean…"

He held up a hand and shook his head. "No worries. How much for do I owe you?"

"Nothing, this one lets say was just for me." She stood up and gathered her things. "Good bye Kitan, I pray you a safe journey. Who knows we may run into each other again." She turned and headed down a path towards the eastern end of the city.

Kitan shouted to her "Then next we meet, I will make it up to you!"

She just lifted a hand and waved back to him as she turned the corner. He smiled as she left his sight. When he returned to the inn, Axel was already asleep. Kitan saw that the food he had sent up for both of them was already eaten. Both of them; Kitan paid it no mind, he just put his stuff down and went to sleep.

The next morning was very unwelcoming. Axel was already gone; Kitan woke instantly getting his things and rushing downstairs. As he turned the corner into the common area, Axel was chatting with one of the women who worked at the inn. Kitan sighed and joined him. The lady bowed and left them to fetch some food for him, when she returned he said his thanks and took the food.

"So I was thinking, we leave after we eat and we should make it to the Tontuil Inn. A nice place where I have a few favors they owe me. They can give us a room for free so we can save the little money we have until we reach Dralgo.

Kitan raised his eyebrow and said "We? What's this 'we' you keep saying? The money I have is MINE, last I checked you tried to steal it remember?"

"I gave it back didn't I? How bout if I repay you whatever I use? You know I'm good for it." Axel said in between bites.

"By stealing from other people; I don't think so."

Axel just rolled his eyes and remained silent. They finished their food and gathered their things. Once outside Kitan realized Axel wasn't behind him. He waited a few moments for him to join him. Kitan was beginning to get impatient when he heard a commotion inside followed by a woman's scream. Kitan was about to check it out when Axel ran by, grabbing him and hauling him in the direction of the southern gate. He let go once he knew Kitan was following him freely.

"What did you do this time?!" Kitan said to him as the two weaved in and out of the people.

"Nothing, I just grabbed a bite for the road… and maybe kissed his daughter for the entertainment last night." Axel said defending himself. He saw the look Kitan gave him and added. "She was more than willing, I forced nothing onto her."

Kitan grumbled to himself. _He's as bad as Gnal was, maybe worse._ "This better not be a preview of the rest of this trip with you." He said threateningly as he dodged an old woman, side stepping around her. Axel smiled and gave him a mock applause as he himself slid under a table, losing no ground and staying in step with Kitan. After a few minutes of running Axel and Kitan slowed and eventually stopped running. They caught their breaths at the corner leading to the southern entrance. Kitan had to admit, it felt like old times. He was actually smiling and when Axel mentioned it he forced it away; replacing it with a shake of his head. "Shut up and let's go." Kitan instructed as he headed for the entrance. Axel laughed to himself and jogged to catch up. The two left the town and began their trek to Dralgo. Kitan was annoyed with Axel and made sure he knew it. When Axel tried to spark up a conversation Kitan would ignore him and continue walking.

"You know, you were having fun back there, I saw that smile you can't hide the fact you know. C'mon talk to me, this is going to be a longer trip than you think if your not going to make a little effort." Axel said trying to persuade him to talk.

"What goes through that head of yours to make you do the things you do?" Kitan retorted.

Axel just shrugged his shoulders, and hooked his hands behind his head. "I don't know, I just think about it and do it. I know whatever happens I got someone watchin out for me."

Kitan looked at him as he walked along side him. "What do you mean?"

"I mean that every time something bad was happening I have felt this presence like it was watching out for me, protecting me you know? You ever feel that way?"

Kitan looked ahead of them as he thought about it. He remembered all the times him and Gnal used to get into trouble and Kitan would make it out unharmed. "I guess I have." He said quietly.

Axel was silent for a few hours, which made Kitan nervous. He was beginning to realize that when he was speaking he was alright, when he was silent, something was troubling him. _If I have to travel with him I guess I have no choice but to help him_.

"What's got you so quiet Axel?"

Axel stopped and looked back down the path they had come. "Nothing really, its just this is the farthest I have been away from that place."

"Then how do you know about Tontuil Inn?"

"When you live in a place as lively as that you hear things. Honestly I haven't been away from there, ever." Axel turned and smiled, continuing down the path. "I can't wait to see what Dralgo is like. I bet…"

Axel went on and on about things he was hoping to see and events that took place in Dralgo. He told Kitan about all the things he had heard. From the exotic dancers in the inn's to the Gladiator Arena. Axel was so excited when he mentioned all the noble families there. He kept repeating to Kitan about how the noble families would spend large quantities of money on things like outfits and weapons that they would never wear more than once or ever use to save their lives. Axel talked about how every few years they held a tournament to commemorate the people who fell during the Great Divide.

"Is that why your going? You heard they were going to have it take place this year and wanted to test your luck?"

Kitan gave him a slight nod adding "Not exactly my only reason but yes. My master instructed me to join. To show the world that her style of fighting has survived and was passed on. That and something else."

Axel didn't push the subject. He was finally getting him to talk and he wanted to continue to have it. "What are you going to do afterwards?"

Kitan shrugged his shoulders but smiled as he said "I don't know, but I will most likely go out and travel the world. I want to see all the things I heard from the merchants that came to my village."

Axel nodded. Silence returned for the next couple hours. As the sun reached it's highest point. The two stopped to take a break and eat. As they ate Axel kept muttering to himself. Kitan was getting annoyed by it.

"What are you saying over there?"

Axel surprised by his voice, replied "Wha? Oh, in all the commotion I left my axe. It wasn't important or anything but it cost a pretty penny."

Kitan was about to retort with something about stealing but Axel beat him to the punch. "It was the only thing I bought with my own money thank you very much."

Kitan laughed to himself and ate. Once they finished they resumed their trek. It went by slowly until about when the sun was halfway between the horizon and its tip when Axel blurted out.

"Look, that's Tontuil Inn! Now let me do the talking and we will have a room for the night."

Kitan smiled and the two of them picked up their pace. They made it to the inn by the time the sun was just touching the horizon. Axel added something about making it in time but Kitan paid it no attention. He let Axel go in and do what he wanted. It was silent so he took it as a good sign.

"Get out of here you lecherous snake! I owe you nothing except a swift kick for what you did when I first opened! You're the reason I had to move further down this barren road!" a deep, manly voice shouted from inside. The next instant Axel was flying through the air landing on his stomach. Kitan rolled his eyes and walked off. Axel was dusting himself off and shouting back to the man on the other side of the door. After he said what he wanted, Axel caught up to Kitan and the two of them found a place off the road to rest.

"Sorry about that. I was hired a few months back to get traveling people to stop at his place. I sent a man to him who ended up stealing from him. They caught him and returned what was stolen but he had gotten a bad reputation so he was forced to move further down the road. I was hoping he had forgotten about me."

Kitan simply replied. "You're a hard person to forget."

Axel smiled and puffed his chest out, taking it as a compliment.

Kitan just rolled his eyes and finished setting up his sleeping bag.

The two went to sleep waking to the man's voice shouting for them to get out of sight of his place, or else. They quickly gathered their things, and went on their way before he came out to act good on his threat. Most of the day, Kitan realized was of them running away from trouble caused by Axel. Because of all the unintentional attention, they had made great time in making it to Dralgo. By the time the sun had reached the peak, the two of them started to see the tips of the wall surrounding Dralgo.

Axel was laughing as he walked backwards saying to Kitan "Hah, thanks to me we made it in two days. A trip like that would have taken four but thanks to me we made it in two, what do you have to say to that?"

Kitan sighed and said "I am grateful… to your 'help' in getting to Dralgo as quickly as possible."

_Though if you ask me, I could have done without the running, and the sleeping outdoors. I haven't washed myself in days thanks to him._ Kitan thought to himself. The two of them made their way inside. It was much bigger than Ulralon. The walls themselves were much more fortified. Its insides were filled with much more people than Ulralon. The ground itself was in a much fancier way than Ulralon. Buildings that blocked the sun every so often, as if to reach towards the heavens. He was even amazed that it had a pond inside the walls. People were everywhere and Kitan was beginning to feel claustrophobic. His head was spinning and he felt he would have tripped over himself if Axel hadn't steadied him.

Axel, while supporting Kitan waved his free hand in front of them and said with a smile "Welcome to Dralgo, the beginning of the best adventure you'll ever have."


	6. The Patient and the Painter

_**The Patient and the Painter**_

"You can say that again." Kitan said as he and Axel walked the streets. People were bustling by the two of them, shouting their deals and trying to get the people to buy their wares. Men and women dressed in all different things that made him do a double take.

"Are these people all here for the tournament?"

Axel shrugged his shoulders and replied "I doubt it. Some are probably here to sell things. Other's just live here."

Kitan nodded he heard a man talking louder than the others at the stalls. He motioned for Axel to follow. A man was standing on a wall with a small crowd surrounding him.

"Come one, come all! To see the strongest among the world, rise to meet the challenge of a new adversary! Come and see one by one they fall to someone stronger until…" The man raised his arms and the crowd roared with life. He lowered his arms and the crowd went silent. "The strongest man will then be received by an honorable man. The new Lord of Dralgo; Lord Vargas." The crowd erupted once more.

Kitan nudged Axels shoulder and motioned them to get going. The man continued speaking but Kitan paid it no mind. The two of them continued down the path.

"Axel, as you have done I thank you for guiding me to Dralgo." He tossed a bag filled with the koins he was promised. "You are free to do as you please."

Axel studied him as he walked along Kitan. He was silent for a good time, making Kitan assume he had left and gone on his way. Then his voice replied,

"I thought I already was."

Kitan smiled despite himself. He nodded and turned to Axel. "Once a thief…"

"Always a thief." Axel finished, returning the smile. "Now let's go find a place until the tournament."

They asked around and found a place called the Royal Sword and Shield. The two of them found it and spoke to the innkeeper.

"You're going to be fighting in the tournament?" the innkeeper asked, Kitan nodded. The man laughed and replied "Free of charge! You gotta promise me you'll win though." He was smiling "You win and I will be known as the man who housed the strongest man. My business may just need to be enlarged." The innkeeper showed them to their room and left them, talking to himself about plans for after the tournament. Kitan decided to explore Dralgo, and take in all that there was. He saw many things. He passed by a weapon smith, who tried to buy his blades.

"Sorry these mean too much for me to sell them." He replied just walking on.

Kitan continued and saw a tower where many people were going. He decided to go check it out. When he reached the base he saw a spiraling staircase that wrapped itself around until it reached a very wide, open area where you could see all of Dralgo. Once at the top he looked out. Many people were up there. He saw a mother and her child, the child pulling on her hand and pointing off at something only he seemed to see. He looked off to his side and saw the streets lined with buildings on either side. He focused and saw the inn he was staying at. Being up there helped put this large place in perspective. In front of him off in the near distance; a large open area with many people; building stands and things of the sort for the tournament. He looked off to his left side and saw a small wooded area. He mentally told himself to go there once he was able to do what he desired to do, what he had always dreamed to do and see. _That area will be the start_

Axel was getting bored. Why should Kitan get to go out and see all this, leaving me to watch the stuff? He thought to himself slightly annoyed. Axel left the room, and instructed the innkeeper to not let anyone near their room. He just smiled and said something that slightly reassured him. Axel stepped outside and immediately he saw a group of people coming in on horseback through the entrance the two of them had come in just earlier. He paid it little attention. He glanced from one to the next rather quickly and only counted the people. He saw twelve people. Four women, six men and two children, who shared a small pony, Axel let them pass and he went on his way. As he passed the people walking by he resisted the urge to 'liberate' their pouches of koin. _Gotta play nice now that I am travelling with him._ Axel thought to himself as turned a corner. He smiled as he turned the corner. It would seem he had made his way to where most of Dralgo's taverns were. He passed a couple that didn't suit his style, and a few he thought were too eloquent for the likes of people spending their time in them. As he was beginning to lose hope of finding a place that fit his idea of a good time, he came across a tavern called Lady Luck's New Haven. He smiled, it looked like back home. He took a deep breath and coughed, it even smelled like back home. That putrid, yet tolerable smell of cigars, cheap cologne, and the available woman from the brothel. He made himself look somewhat decent, and walked inside. It was lively, men at tables shouting about their days when they were younger and sharing their adventures. Women in very attractive uniforms. They wore a very small bonnet, where some kept their rolled up hair behind. The women wore matching black with a small but very eloquent stripe down the side of purple tops and matching knee length skirts. Even with the length, it would seem that they were taught how to make even their clothes seem apart of themselves, the way they were moving. One saw him and walked towards him. She walked very seductive like as she made her way to him. He could see how this place stuck out among the rest. He smiled as she neared.

"Care for a drink hon?"

He leaned in so his cheek brushed hers, and ran a hand up her arm from her elbow to the tray she was carrying. He took a drink, not knowing what it was, and with his other hand slipped a koin into her pouch on the front end of her top. She smiled and gave him a wink. While he was still close to her she asked in a sultry voice "Can I get you anything else hon?" He just smiled and shook his head. "Though if I do, what name should I ask for?"

"Melissa" she replied looking him up and down quickly, liking what she saw she added "you may be the best lookin guy in here, so I hope you come back and ask for me." She gave him another wink and went off to a table to serve them drinks. As he sat down at a table playing a card game. He told himself _this was going to be a fun few hours._

Kitan had left the viewing tower and went to where the Gladiator's arena was located. He had asked a local merchant. The man just smiled and pointed him in the right direction. When he did reach it he noticed the many people. Most were large and built like a wall. One man in particular noticed him, shrugged the shoulder of a man next to him and pointed over his shoulder. The two men laughed and turned towards him.

"What village in Dralgo would dare to send such a small, tiny man with a pair of toothpicks to the tournament?"

Kitan ignored them. That made them annoyed. One of the two men stepped towards Kitan and stood in front of him. He was built like a wall and stood as tall as one. He smiled and said "You, tiny. I was talking to you. Speak or I will make you speak, and you don't want me to make you."

Kitan remained silent. He just looked on waiting for his turn to enter. It made the man very aggravated. He grumbled a very audible growl and reached down to pull him up by his shirt. As the man's fingers made contact with Kitan's clothes, Kitan using only his head, stood up on his toes and quickly head-butt the man. The man and Kitan stayed like that for only a few seconds. After that, the man fell backwards, and onto the ground next to his friend. His eyes rolled back into his head.

"You should take your friend somewhere where he can rest." Kitan replied calmly. He passed by the man, adding "Oh and I trained under Master Tin Dall." It got a very unnerving response. The crowd that had gathered began to mutter among themselves. He continued on until he reached the registration.

"I would like to enter myself into the Gladiator fights. Am I too late?" Kitan asked

The man just nodded and stuttered "Y, y, yes. We will b, begin again t, tomor, tomorrow. Sign in a, and come b, back." He handed him the sign in list and Kitan signed it. Kitan walked back towards the Royal Sword and Shield. He had enough exercise for one day and wanted to get some rest for tomorrow. He smiled all the way back. Axel wasn't there, but he wasn't worried about him. Kitan knew he could take care of himself. He yawned, and went to sleep. Tomorrow was going to be busy for him.

Axel had just won the last three hands. He was smiling at the moment. His hand was a very winning hand. After his first win a stranger to the table had joined them. He hadn't spoken much, this mystery man had just tossed in his koin when he felt like, knowing full well his hand was a losing one. Axel didn't care; it meant he had more to spend.

"Alright boys, this is my last hand. Once I am gone, you can split what money this fine gentleman has among the three of you." Only one laughed at his comment, the other two just grumbled to themselves.

They did their final ante and showed what they had. Axel went first. "Read em and weep, a full house of lovers and their bag boys, Queens over Jacks." The others all at the table slammed down their cards. All but the mystery man; he smiled and put his hand down face up. He spoke finally. His voice sent a chill down Axel's spine.

"Royalty and their assassin's. Aces over Kings… You lose, boy. Get used to that concept" the man said looking him in the eyes. The man was blind.

_How does he know…? _Axel thought as he gathered his things. "Sorry, I don't lose often, old man. Consider your win, beginner's luck. Till next we play." With that he left the tavern. The sun was setting and Axel felt his pouch with a hand. It felt fairly heavy. It would get the two of them by for a good while. He yawned and made his way back to the Royal Sword and Shield. His step just a little more enthusiastic then necessary.

Kitan woke up early the next day. He was excited to finally test his skills with the blade against people who he had never sparred with. He knew they would most likely come for him with death as their intention. After all, he had read the rules and he didn't see the rule disqualifying him if his opponent was killed. He gathered his things and grabbed a couple fruit for on the way. He didn't want to have to fight both some guy trying to kill him and an empty stomach. He made quick time, as there were few people on the streets. Once there he registered.

"Your match is scheduled for midday sir. Your opponent hasn't registered yet."

Kitan was curious as to what his opponent's name was.

"His name is Kris Write. That is all I know, for now."

He thanked the man and decided he had some time. He would check out the woods he saw the other day. Kitan left the Arena and made a left. He passed more people trying to buy and sell things. He was coming to realize why they had to shout so much. People got tired of having things thrust into their way. Kitan made it a point to walk in the middle, weaving his way in between people. As he made his way finally to the open wooded area, he smiled. It was peaceful.

_Like back home, a place for me to focus_ Kitan thought positively. He unsheathed his blades. He started out with the meditative stance known as Calming Waterfall. Once he had his breathing under control, he slowly went through the stances. As he warmed up and once again got used to using them as an extension of his own arms he moved through the forms like fluid. He moved like he was dancing a beautiful dance of death. While going through the form Crescent's Demise, he noticed the sun was almost at its peak. He sheathed his blades and jogged back to the arena.

Kris… Kris Write and Kitan Namathorn, please enter the ring."

Kitan looked around to see who moved. A small boy moved towards the center. He was shocked someone so young was entering. Kitan joined him and saw that he carried with him two sickles with a long chain attached to the hilts.

"Fighters ready? Begin!"

Kris instantly went on the assault. He threw one end at him and Kitan effortlessly knocked it away. While Kris tossed one end he kept spinning the other end near him, _like a shield_ Kitan told himself. Kitan began to formulate a plan. Kris threw his sickle once again. This time Kitan didn't knock it away, he ducked. Kitan was about to go on the assault when Kris threw the other end towards him, and pulling on the other end already extended. Kitan had no choice but to quickly sidestep as the two changed places. Kris was smiling. Like he was playing a game he continued to move like the child he was. Kitan doubted if he had ever seen someone killed. As Kris once again tossed one end towards Kitan he dodged and ran towards Kris, expecting the same tactic. He was wrong. Kris flicked his wrist and the effect was like that of a whip. A whip with a deadly end. The whip lashed back towards Kitan and once again he was forced to dodge. He wasn't fast enough and the ends grazed his left leg and left arm. They weren't deep but he got the message. He wasn't predictable. Kitan had to think of another way to get close. Then it hit him. Kitan continued to dodge the ends until Kris made the mistake of not whipping the end. Once one end was fully extended Kitan grabbed the chain with his blades and with one of the blades sent a backlash of his own. The chain slipped out of his hand and for the few moments Kris was open. Kitan rushed in and just as he regained control of his weapon, Kitan had swiped at his feet sending him off balance with one blade and with the other…

"Winner. Kitan Namathorn!" The people cheered. Kitan using his other blade swiped at his throat, stopping it short of his neck. Kris was looking down at what had happened. He sighed, kicking dirt up into the air with his foot but looked to Kitan with a smile and said "That was fun! You're really good, my papa would have liked to meet you but he is busy. Thanks for the fight mister, bye." Kitan watched him run off accepting the consolation prize. Kitan was pumped up after that match but the finals weren't scheduled until dusk. He went and got some lunch. As Kitan paid for some food from a vendor he noticed a pack of people passing by on horseback. Six men and four women. One looked oddly familiar but he couldn't put his finger on her face. He didn't want to rack his mind for the answer so he just focused on getting ready for the final match.

Axel woke up once again after Kitan. Today a note was on the door for Axel.

'_**I am at the Gladiator arena, if you need me I am there. Try to stay out of trouble?'**_

Axel rolled his eyes and crumpled the note, tossing it on the dresser. He got some food from the common area and once again sweet talked the barmaid with a few koins for the fresher food. She smiled and giggled and returned with the freshest assortment he had ever seen. He was getting used to having some comfort room with people. Once he was full he left and saw a woman he saw come in on horseback the other day. He decided his luck was good enough for him to try his way with her. Axel quickly caught up with her as she made her way up to the highest tower. Once up at the top she set up her belongings and sat down. Waiting for something. Axel looked around for someone or something to catch her attention. Nothing, Axel was getting impatient. He decided to walk up to her and introduce himself.

"Hello beauty, my name is Axel, Axel Minitil. What should a woman such as yourself be named, though I doubt comes close to equaling your beauty." He said softly, bowing gracefully. She laughed softly and replied "Jade Nichols, I think you're wrong though. I rather love my name. Tis simple yes?"

"Ah, yes. I can see how even simple things are better than complexities. What business has you all alone up here?" Axel asked giving her his best smile.

"I am here to sketch portraits. It would seem my client is a bit late..." She sighed.

"Would you like me to keep you company? Someone as beautiful as you shouldn't be so alone on such a day as this."

She smiled and nodded after a moment of thought. "I would like that. So what brings you here?"

Axel leaned against the railing and replied "A friend of mine is competing in the tournament."

She gave him a mock gasp, but laughed softly afterwards adding "When does it begin? This tournament?"

"Tomorrow in fact. You're welcome to join me in cheering him on if you'd like? That is, only if your free of course."

She smiled and nodded excitedly. "I would love to cheer on your friend; I haven't been to a tournament before." She glanced behind him and saw what Axel could only guess was her client. It was a very eloquent looking woman. She didn't look too old; a few wrinkles that gave her face a defined, yet graceful look. He nodded and bid her farewell. Once he left her he decided he had nothing better to do so he would go look for some form of entertaining himself. The mystery man at the tavern came into his head. He wondered if the man would be there again. Axel pulled out his lucky coin. Rolling it along his knuckles he made his way back to the inn, deciding he would have enough excitement come tomorrow, when he would accompany the beautiful Jade.

Kitan was being hammered. Once dusk had come his opponent, a woman by the name of Hailey Filial joined him in the center. She was using typical grappler's claws. She had the tips made longer, and curved out so that even when she missed; there was a chance of striking. Kitan had sustained many of his cuts that way. He learned fast how to evade them but he was exhausted now and his vision was getting harder to see her thanks to the setting sun. She lunged for him slashing swiftly at the same time at his shoulders inward. Kitan rushed forward, deciding on an all or nothing approach. Her arms enclosed around him, Kitan ducked but she anticipated it. Her arms were around him and two of the deadly points were inches away from his throat. She would have killed him there had he not crossed his blades in defense against his chest.

"The winner, The Puma, Hailey!" The people cheered for her and she released him. She winked at him and left him. Standing there baffled at her. _People outside are very… different._ Kitan thought as the medic came and cleaned his wounds. Once he was taken care of they awarded her the grand prize, a fairly large bag of koin. To Kitan they awarded him a cloak with the emblem of two swords crossed together. He graciously took it and made his way back to the inn. It was odd though; people were talking to him as he passed. They would come up to him, congratulate him, and always repeat one phrase that made him stand a little taller. They called him 'Kitan of the Crescent Blade.'


	7. The Tournament

_**The Tournament**_

Kitan spent the night waking and sleeping, waking and sleeping. After waking for the fourth time, he decided to open the window and climb out onto the roof, to see the stars like he did back in his village. He climbed up, finding a nice level area and sat down. He looked out over the top of the houses lining Dralgo's inner wall. Lights lining the streets were being lit by the patrolling guards at night. Some lights were even on in the houses. He looked up at the sky, cloudless and bright. He made shapes and designs like when he was a child. Kitan laid down after a few minutes when he decided not to strain his neck. He laid there and listened to the sounds, comparing them to back home. A few birds chatted back and forth among themselves and every so often he saw some movement cause by a small creature of the night. He smiled at how at night, no matter where he was, it sounded like home. He yawned and decided that it wasn't as cold tonight, so he would sleep up here. He closed his eyes and soon was asleep. He woke with the rays of the sun. He smiled standing up, and stretching. He turned to go inside when he saw Axel motioning to him.

"You spent all night up here? You really are one weird person, you know?" He didn't wait for an answer as he returned inside.

Kitan followed him, gathered his things and the two of them left towards the tournament grounds. Axel kept looking around.

"Something on your mind Axel?"

He shrugged and shook his head. "I was going to meet a woman, and was hoping to run into her before we met up at the tournament grounds. Oh well." He walked on. Kitan caught up, leaving it at that. The streets were more crowded than the day before so it took the two of them a little longer than expected to reach their destination. Once they were there, Kitan noticed a line of people. All waiting to talk to a man at a desk and a man with a long board, he assumed it was the sign in.

"Well, this is where we part ways, I'll be cheerin you on, so don't lose." Axel smiled and leaned in and added "Though if you do decide to go down, try going down in the top three matches hm?"

Kitan rolled his eyes and pushed him towards the stands. Axel laughed and left him to be by himself. It didn't take long for Kitan to reach the front, they had another man come in to speed things up.

"Name?" he said.

"Kitan, Namathorn."

The man next to the board, inserting his name in a jar on a piece of paper.

"Go on, next!"

Kitan went into the entrance all the others had entered. It led Kitan to the center of the grounds. As the people watching poured in Kitan truly felt the greatness of the place. The building was much larger than it looked outside. Kitan couldn't stop looking around; he tried to control his amazement by taking a deep breath and focusing on a spot in front of him. A man to his left laughed and when Kitan turned to see him, it was the man who he had head-butt at the Gladiator Arena. Kitan smiled and the man, realizing who it was, cut his laughter and turned away. Kitan was beginning to relax, knowing there were people like him here made it easier to take in. Once all the onlookers were in their seats, and all the participants had entered, everything went silent. Kitan looked around and noticed they were all looking up at a balcony. A man very eloquently dressed emerged from the doorway. The crowd erupted in cheers, and the man held up his hands to silence them. It took a few moments but they did as he motioned.

"Brothers, Sisters. People of Dralgo! I welcome you, to the greatest cherished tradition to have survived the test of time. The Dralgonan Atlas Tournament!" The crowd roared to life once again, and once again he motioned for silence. "Before you stand the best warriors from the farthest reaches of Althuron. They will fight, with honor, their skills, and their strength to achieve the title of Champion of Atlas. The rules are simple, no life will be taken, an honorable man will only take a life in war, and this is not. Anything other than killing your opponent can go, everything you can use at your disposal is at your disposal to become the Champion of Atlas. Now warriors take your place. Two will fight, one will move on until one is given the title you so deserve. Victory to you all, and may glory be yours this day!"

The crowd cheered once more as he left the balcony. The warriors exited out a side door with a place to rest, and watch who was fighting. A man announced the first two fighters, they entered. It was a few moments but one emerged victorious. Every time a warrior was victorious the crowd seemed to cheer louder and louder, knowing that it meant they were that much closer to seeing who would be, the Champion of Atlas.

"Kitan Namathorn and Celas Turlock."

Kitan took a deep breath, unsheathed his weapons, and went to the center. Celas, a woman just a head shorter than Kitan, had blonde hair. She wore a light armor for quick mobility, and carried a spear. It was tipped on both ends. The signal was made and the fight began. She didn't wait. As the man moved out of the way, she rushed towards Kitan. Her spear was flexible and as she twirled it in a circle the tip wagged back and forth like the edge of his swords. Kitan stood his ground. At the last moment she thrust it at him, Kitan knocked it away from him effortlessly with his arm. He twisted his arm quickly around the shaft and with as much force as he could muster, sliced downward, breaking one end of the spear. The crowd cheered. Kitan took it as his opening. He rushed quickly towards her. She dropped her spear and pulled out two daggers from behind her back and did the same. The two clashed in a dead lock. Neither wanting to give an inch to the other. Kitan; seeing as it wasn't getting him anywhere, quickly moved back, catching her off balance, and pushed her to the ground. Before she had time to recover, Kitan had front flipped towards her, his leg outstretched catching her in her stomach. He felt a rib crack under his foot. He quickly rolled to safety and as she struggled to get to her feet, Kitan swiftly closed the distance and thrust the butt of his hilt into her stomach. She fell to her knees and dropped her daggers. She clutched her chest and Kitan was named victorious. She was helped off to the side so the doctor could treat her. Kitan looked up into the crowds and saw faces of people, cheering for his victory. He smiled and returned to the other warriors. The next few competitors entered. It went like that for some time. He kept to himself. The others watched him. He grimaced to himself. Kitan knew he let the others know he was good, he was too much in a hurry to finish the task given to him he forgot to hold onto the element of surprise. _Oh well, get over it and plan for the next fight._ Kitan thought to himself.

"Kitan! Kitan hey!" Axel's familiar voice came abruptly from above him. Kitan moved out and looked up. He was smiling down at him, stuffing food into his mouth. That wasn't what made him look puzzled. It was the face, next to Axel, smiling down at him as well. "Hey, want you to meet-"

"Jade, what are you doing here?" Kitan said interrupting him. Axel looked from her to him.

"You know her?"

"We met before we left for Dralgo, she uh, drew my picture." Kitan replied.

"Kitan Namathorn and Shulu Yun. Please come to the center."

Kitan looked down at who moved, it was a tall man off in the other end of the fighter pit. He carried two ball and chains with a very large and wide sword on his back. He was smiling at him.

"Kitan, good luck..." Jade's voice said, returning his gaze up to her.

He just smiled and unsheathed a blade, resting it up on his shoulder as he joined Shulu in the center.

When Kitan stepped once again in the place he was at earlier in the day, Shulu looked from Kitan, to jade who was waving at Kitan and cheering him on.

"Your woman will be in tears when I crush you under my feet." He smiled as he whirled one of the chains above his head. He swung it faster and just as sudden as he started, He pulled it forcefully down. The ball came crashing down just in front of Kitan. Kitan didn't move from where he stood. Shulu saw this and apparently unfazed by his failure to scare him, he stood back up and said calmly "Your search for glory dies with me."

"BEGIN!"

The man roared a loud battle cry as he began to twirl both chains on either side of him. He did this and began to rush towards Kitan. Kitan saw he wanted close combat, even knowing his skills with his blades. Kitan unsheathed his blades and took a defensive stance, moving back and forth avoiding the large metal ball with large spikes all over it. The man twirled his body, changing it from an up and down circle, to a criss crossing motion around his body. Kitan was caught off guard. He back-flipped just as the man crossed them in front of him and in mid-flip struck him back to the ground. Kitan hit the floor hard, and rolled away and to his feet again. He coughed up some blood and spat it to his side. The man stood to his full height and just smiled. Kitan took a calming breath, letting himself enter the state when he trained alone. He fed every emotion and focused on nothing and everything. Kitan became his blades, cool and hard. Devoid of feeling. In this state Kitan felt like he was just an onlooker watching a play before him and his body and the man he was fighting, the actors. Kitan switched how he held his swords so the blade was on the underside of his arms. Kitan rushed toward the man as he once again began to twirl the deadly ball and chains around him. Kitan sidestepped as the man threw one at his head and rolled as the man swung the other horizontally at Kitan's stomach. Kitan sliced upwards, breaking the chain. The man stumbled back, pulling the large blade from behind him. Kitan was within ten feet when the man slashed downward letting out a frantic yell. Kitan stopped in his tracks protecting himself from being sliced in two. The force behind the strike took Kitan to a knee. Shulu slowly let himself return to his confident demeanor at the start of the match.

"Die, vermin! DIE!"

Kitan was beginning to feel the exhaustion. He struggled to get to his feet but the man had too much leverage for Kitan to get a foothold. Kitan let his eyes drift just slightly behind the man. Then he saw him. While everyone behind him was cheering and shouting their support. He saw, the man who struck down Gnal. Kitan felt his anger returning to him, bubbling up out of control. Kitan, no longer cared for the man before him. He just wanted to reach him. He let out a beastly roar of his own, pushing the huge sword to his side. He roared again as he lunged up, missing as he slashed at his neck, he slashed with his other blade at the arm holding the weapon. Shulu let out a shout of pain. Kitan continued to push through the man by stepping on his leg and landing a powerful kick to his face. Shulu fell back bleeding out of several places and Kitan ignored him. He landed on the ground and continued his pursuit towards the man. He let out another roar as he neared the man. The crowd was screaming in fear trying to get out of his path. As Kitan was about to reach the edge of people just in front of the man, Axel and Jade had reached him. She had thrown a small net that connected with his legs, He tripped and as he fell Axel grabbed his arms. He thrashed as he struggled to break free. Kitan's fury didn't cease. His eyes were locked on the face that never dropped that confident smile. He heard Axel and Jade's voice and reluctantly, Kitan looked back at them. They were shaking their heads and talking to him. They were trying to get him to calm down. He looked back to where the man was. Nowhere, he had vanished. With him gone, Kitan lost all desire to struggle and thus, returned to his normal self. They waited a few moments before feeling it was safe to free him, and help him up.

"What the hell man? What was that about?" Axel said with a slight under tone of confusion. Jade just stared at him, with a look that seemed to be analyzing his body language.

"I saw him, the man that killed… that killed Gnal."

Axel went silent; Jade moved slowly to him and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. She didn't say anything; just let the action speak for him. Over his shoulder the man overseeing the match finally reached him. He just smiled at Jade and turned to the man.

"What are you doing young man?! Are you mad?"

Kitan held up a hand to silence him and replied calmly. "Don't worry about me, this was a onetime thing, I had a… moment of weakness. Please let me continue. I can promise I wont have another moment like this again."

The man looked to the head overseer. He and the other judges whispered to each other then looked back. He nodded and the man before them replied "Alright, it seems you can continue. Be warned boy, you let this happen again and you forfeit your position and are no longer part of the tournament. Understood?" Kitan nodded. "Then return to the fighter's pit. And you two, thank you for your intervention but please. Return to your seats and enjoy the rest of the tournament."

Axel and Jade looked at Kitan, he nodded, they nodded back and Axel gently moved Jade back to their seats. Kitan sighed and took one last look around. He didn't see him. He sighed again and returned to the fighter's pit. As he sat down the other fighters outwardly moved away from him. All but one moved away. A woman; she wore a black scarf that covered her mouth, and had tattoos along both her upper arms. Her hair was dyed, a light green, and both her top and bottom were black. She had her arms crossed against her chest and was calm. As if to her the event that just took place never happened. He saw a thin, long curved blade wrapped sideways along the small of her back and two daggers on either side of her waist.

"That fury of yours; if you learned to control it, you could be very deadly." She looked at him then and smiled both a very flirtatious and deadly smile and added "I like deadly. Makes life interesting."

He looked away and blushed. She laughed and as the overseer called her and her opponent's name; got up then walked to the fighting ground. Kitan shuddered to think he could pull the attention of such a woman. Her fight went rather quickly. He had only carried a handful of darts, claiming he was very skilled. She evaded his darts and tossed one that was stuck in the ground back at his leg. It seemed he had dipped them in a sleeping mixture because as she followed it up with her daggers; he staggered a bit, and then fell to the ground. She shook her head, not waiting for her to be named the winner. She took her place once more near Kitan, looking at him and winking. The first round of matches in the tournament had completed.

The overseer stood in the center of the fighting grounds and speaking loudly said "Ladies and Gentlemen! I give you your victors, your warriors of virtue and strength!" The crowd stood to their feet and cheered. "Tomorrow we will begin the next round of fights, to narrow down the competitors to become the champion… of ATLAS!" Once again they roared to life. "Thank you, brave warriors for stepping up to the challenge, and thank you, people of Dralgo, for putting your hopes on these fine, skilled fighters!" The crowd cheered one last time before filing out of the Tournament grounds. Kitan just sat there, waiting for the people to dwindle. The woman who fought last got up and as she walked by him, stopped. He looked up and opened his mouth to ask her if she needed something when she quickly turned to him, leaned down, and skillfully pulling her scarf down quickly; planted a passionate kiss on her end, on his lips. She pulled away, winked and said only loud enough to him "The name is Whitney Marie. Glad to have met you, I look forward to fighting with you." She stood up and walked off. Whitney and Jade passed each other; sharing a quick look between each other. Whitney laughed softly as she rounded the corner.

"Kitan, you were great! I had no idea you were so skilled. I know you have a good chance at winning." She said smiling in encouragement. Axel wasn't far behind her. "Yeah, the little lady is right. I knew you were good, but damn, not that good. I may have to put some koin on your head." He said adding to her statement.

Kitan smiled and shook his head. "I don't care if I win, but thank you. I only entered because it was a wish from my master. She wanted to show the world she had passed on her teachings to someone. This was how she wanted to show them."

Kitan got up and the three of them went to eat. They talked about lots. Laughing and pointing at what people were wearing. Axel kept making bets of how far he could get with the women. Jade rolled her eyes but laughed at his remarks. Kitan smiled. He yawned and noticed that the patrols were patrolling the streets. They walked Jade to her place and returned to the inn. Kitan was welcomed by the innkeeper with a plate full of hot food, a hot bath, and the chance to spend the night with his daughter, though he graciously turned it down. He went to his room and to make sure he was alone; put the desk slightly in front of the door. He went to sleep after redressing his wounds. Once his head hit the bed, he was out. His dreams were peaceful. Except for when he dreamt of the man. He spoke to him, repeating that phrase he said to Kitan when he attacked the three of them.

"In due time, _Fatalis ab pugnator_."


	8. Final Rises of the Wager

"Seamus Callahan and Yenta Sorel, come to the center of the ring."

The two met in the center. Axel watching intently, a small smile on his face. Jade studied the two and glanced at Axel. "Who do you think will win?"

Axel, not taking his eyes off the two fighters replied "Yenta, I got some money on her."

She shook her head, "Is that all you think about?"

At hearing this accusation, he looked at her. Shaking his head he said genuinely "Not the only thing. I like to make life interesting, if a wager or two here and there does the trick, who's to say otherwise?" He returned to watching the match as the two began. Jade had to admit to herself, the movements each fighter made were like an art form. She began to watch more intently. The one known as Seamus had just shot an arrow that had made contact with Yenta's arm. She stopped; Seamus shot another but this time in her leg. She cried out and tossed away her weapon. That signaled that the fight was over. Jade let herself breathe a sigh of relief. Although Jade could hold her own with her daggers, seeing someone in pain, always got to her. Axel cursed, slamming a fist against his seat.

She giggled and said "Looks like you lose. Better Luck next time."

Axel smiled "Yeah, I know my bet on Kitan will pay off twice over and get back what I lost with her. That guy is unbelievable…" He said that last part more to himself than to her. After they had cleared the field of Yenta, the announcer came out and announced the next two to fight. Jade and Axel paid little attention. Axel didn't have a bet on either fighter so he went to get something to eat. Jade watched it, holding his seat until he returned. Once the man finished, the announcer came out again to announce the next to fight. A man rushed out and began to whisper into his ear. The crowd began to murmur to themselves while the two exchanged words. When the man finally ran off to the side, the man held his hands up to quiet the crowd.

Once quiet, he spoke "Ladies and Gentleman. Due to unforeseen circumstances we must proceed to the final ten competitive matches." The crowd began to voice their opinion and once again he waited until they quieted down.

"Ladies and Gentleman, please when we find out what went wrong we will advise you of the events. Right now, please give a round of applause for our first fighters. Kitan Namathorn and Seamus Callahan, please come out to the center."  
The crowd was hesitant but soon they were cheering for the two.

As Kitan stepped out from under the area she and Axel were sitting. He began stretching. Kitan looked to be alert and comfortable with the outcome. Jade, before she missed her opportunity, leaned over and shouted to him "Kitan!" He stopped, looked up behind him and smiled. "Good luck!" He held a hand up in acknowledgement and joined Seamus in the center. She felt slightly relieved.

Kitan and Seamus nodded to each other. Kitan motioned for Seamus to move back; making Seamus tilt his head in confusion. Kitan spoke to him and Seamus smiled. Seamus turned around and casually walked backwards until he was about near the other end of the fighting grounds. He held a hand up, drew his bow, and pulled an arrow out. Kitan unsheathed his blades. He stood there for a moment, staring down Seamus. Then it happened. The arrow left the bow, Kitan sprinted forward, zigging and zagging from side to side. Jade watched in both fear and excitement. She saw arrow after arrow, notched and fired at Kitan. Kitan had closed half the distance when people in the crowd gasped all around her. Seamus had enough arrows in his quiver for him to begin doing what he was doing. He had begun notching two arrows and skillfully, firing them both one at a time a second or two after firing the one before, and firing both at the same time at Kitan. Kitan skidded to a stop, catching an arrow in his arm. Instead of shouting his pain, Kitan rolled to the side and continued his assault. Seamus was smiling when Jade quickly glanced at him. Seamus fired an unusual looking arrow with a shiny back end into the air. Kitan resumed zigzagging but kept a watchful eye. Seamus notched another arrow quickly when it reached a nice height and fired it at the other arrow. Because the second arrow didn't have a metal back end, it flew faster. When it made contact with the metal backed arrow that one changed its course. Once changed, and angled down at Kitan. Seamus fired another at it. Kitan now halted in his rush, preparing himself for whatever Seamus had planned. When the third arrow made contact with the arrow with the metal back end the arrow exploded. Not into tiny slivers of shattered wood, but into deadly smaller arrows. Jade lost count after twenty five. She stood up, clutching the railing in front of her unwilling to take her eyes off of what was in front of her. Kitan readied himself. As Kitan was engulfed by the arrows, a cloud of dust flew up from the speed, and power of impact. Jade couldn't help but to clutch to Axel's shoulder as she watched, and waited for the dust to clear. Seamus didn't wait. He began to fire arrow after arrow into the dust cloud. All flew out the other end. All but one. The crowd began to whisper to themselves when Kitan flew out of the cloud closest near Seamus. Seamus had a look of terror on his face as he tossed his bow away. The crowd roared with applause, Jade fell back into her seat, unclenching her hand from Axel's shoulder.

He leaned into her and whispered into her ear "You should have known that would happen. Kitan always comes through." Axel stood up and said as he left "now time to collect my winnings." Jade just rolled her eyes as she turned her gaze back to the two warriors. Kitan and Seamus were frozen, Kitan with his blades pointed and close to Seamus' body. One pointed at his throat and another near the bottom of his chest. Kitan pulled away and sheathed his blades. Jade smiled to herself and was glad to see that he helped Seamus retrieve his weapon and to see the two of them return to the warrior's pit. Jade didn't care to pay attention to the next match. She watched, but didn't pay attention to the winner or the loser. She just kept count of how many matches the final's had. It was third match after Kitan's match starting the finals, the match that caught her attention. Not hers specifically but Axel's.

"What the… that's the guy from the tavern." Jade looked at him as he spoke, and then turned her eyes to the man. He was a tall man, about Axel's height from what she could tell. She couldn't see his face, because he didn't take off his hood. He didn't have any weapon but the two somewhat large daggers pointing out from the sleeves of his coat. She hadn't paid any attention to the match and so didn't hear his name, or his opponent. Immediately after the man shouted for them to begin, the hooded figure sprinted. He was fast. Before the man who announced the two to begin could reach the safety of the edge of the fighting ground, the hooded man's opponent had hit the ground, unconscious. The hooded man stood over him.

Jade exhaled the breath she had held and was about to ask Axel if he saw what happened, when she looked at Axel. Axel was softly… growling. He was clenching his jaw and his hands were twitching while they were resting on the hilt of his spear.

"Damn him..." Was all Axel replied with. Jade wouldn't have heard it herself if she hadn't been sitting next to him as close as she was. The man didn't wait to be announced the winner. He just turned towards where Kitan was. He slowly raised a hand. The crowd went silent. His hand didn't stop at Kitan's level. But continued to rise. It rose until his hand was angled at where Jade and Axel were sitting. His hand was held so his fingers were outstretched towards them. A gust of wind blew through the area just then and his hood blew back. Jade felt a chill go down her spine. Her body felt frozen, unable to move under his gaze. She was unable to gaze away from his face. Scarred, and slightly disfigured due to a fire. Swiftly his hand twitch upward, his palm now aimed towards them. A dagger flashed out and flew towards her. She was unable to move under his snakelike smile and deadly eyes. She watched as it slowly flew through the air at her. As its shadow crossed over the railing and closed the gap, Axel's body was all she saw as he suddenly threw himself in the path of the dagger. The once hooded man's smile was all she saw as she lost consciousness. She awoke to Axel's face above her.

"What, what happened?" She asked

Axel smiled and replied somewhat hoarsely "After winning the guy" he gripped his side and continued "Tossed a dagger at you, you didn't move so I well, took a chance and moved into the path." He moved his hand and showed her the spot, now bandaged injury. "I chased him but he took me down so fast… I…sorry." He said balling his hand into a fist. "Next time though, you wait, I will get more than just 'Votum Proeliator Fatum'."

She smiled and squeezed his arm, then used it as support as she got up. "What happened? What about the rest of the matches?" She asked once she was standing, looking down at the fighting ground.

Axel replied "They postponed it due to the attack, I already sent a messenger to let them know to resume the fights. You think you can continue to watch?"

Jade smiled and nodded, adding "Why would I not be able to? I wasn't the one who got injured."

Axel smiled and sat gently next to her, making sure to not tear his stitches. The next two fighters joined each other in the center. Jade though, didn't pay attention. She was too focused on the hooded man and why he tried to kill her. Why did he say what he said? I don't know the language… if he wanted to taunt me he'd of done it where I would understand him. There must have been a reason for doing what he did…

"Jade it's Kitan's match; he's the last of the fights today. Tomorrow the last four fighters will fight till there is only the winner" he laughed and rubbed his hands together and added "then I get to collect on my koin, and of course give him his cut."

Jade smiled at his comment, she was beginning to see how much of a friend he was and refused to show. Even though outwardly Axel would talk about his own interest Axel would help Kitan. In his own amusing way to her. She turned her attention to the last match, to Kitan's match. He had just walked out and was waiting for his opponent. The man took his time getting out from the fighters pit. He was the tallest man, not to mention the ugliest. She had to avert her eyes before she felt like bringing back up her breakfast. Once she had adjusted to seeing this beast of a man, she began to feel worried. He was twice Kitan's height easily. Not to mention twice as bulky. His arms could be mistaken for two of Kitan's arms mashed together as one where his huge vein ran under the skin. The man's legs were the size of large barrels. To Jade they seemed to be able to crush a man under the deadly weight of it. She shuddered as the overseer announced the final match's names. The huge beast of a man's name was Torques. This man's footstep was felt from her seat.

"Tiny man, you lose now. Torques wins and gets prize, then all like Torques." His voice was so deep and loud Jade was sure all could hear him. She prayed Kitan would win.

Kitan just looked up at him and smiled. Standing there, waiting, and letting this man make the first move.

"Begin!"

He roared and began to walk towards Kitan. Kitan stood his ground. Jade noticed he wasn't moving as if to strike him, she was wrong. Once within distance this beastly man's savage nature reared to life. He balled his hands together into a giant ball and slammed it where Kitan was. He moved easily out of the way by jumping back. For one so big he didn't think he would be as fast as he moved. Once his fist hit the ground he tossed it around him and swung it as Kitan. It took him by surprise and was unable to fully prevent him from making contact. Kitan went skidding across the ground. He rolled backwards and though a bit wobbly got to his feet. The crowd roared in anticipation of a spectacular fight. Kitan finally took his weapons out. Torques did the same. It was a long slender blade with jagged edges, and looked to be the length of his whole arm. Kitan ran towards him, Torques responded by swinging it horizontally. Kitan rolled under but once again with that speed he showed before Torques circled the blade around him and swung it downward where Kitan was. Kitan tried to get out of the way but Torques was smarter than he looked. Instead of a slice directly downward he curved his strike. Kitan tried to block it but his weapon was so long in length and had such force behind it that it pushed him a few feet and slightly off the ground. Kitan looked like a rag doll to Jade. Torques wasn't giving him a chance to counter. Jade heard Kitan let out a scream of pain. She realized she wasn't looking. She immediately returned to the gruesome scene. Torques had him in a bear hug, crushing Kitan against his chest. Kitan let out another scream of pain, as he was able to get an arm out. Kitan, not letting his chance slip out of his hands. He put all his strength into a punch he landed right between his eyes. Torques dropped him and covered his face, stumbling backwards. Kitan hit the ground and rolled backwards to where he must have dropped his swords. Jade smiled as he picked them up and ran towards him. She stood up and cheered as Kitan dodged his flailing arm stepping up on his leg. She let out a gasp and covered her mouth when Torques's flailing arm made contact with Kitan, sending him back to the ground. He had recovered enough for his sight to return. Torques, getting on a knee, took Kitan's sword and tried to sink it in his chest. Thinking fast Kitan rolled to one side, Torques repeated his action. Kitan did as well; frustrated Torques let out a beastly roar inches from his face. Kitan responded by pulling his dagger he had hidden at his side and jammed it into his eye. Torques leaned back and let out the most horrifying, blood curdling scream she had heard. It sent shivers up her spine and watched in horror as he pulled it out of his socket, along with his eye. People all around the ring gasped in horror at seeing a human eye. He looked down at Kitan. While Torques had done what he did, Kitan had struggled to get his blade that had landed just a couple feet from where he was. He had inched his hand towards it. Kitan managed to reach it just as he heard Torques's growl. He looked up as Torques looked down; ready to strike him with the weapon he had just used to remove from his socket. Kitan, thinking fast and as an act of desperation slashed his blade in a horizontal slash. It was angled at his neck. Everything went silent. Torques, the people watching, Kitan only heard the sound of his heart trying to beat its way out of his chest. Torques's face held a look of bewilderment. Like he didn't expect that to happen.  
Then it happened. The tear appeared slowly. The tear started from the side the blade made first contact and slowly separated his head from the rest of his body. It fell backwards under the weight and his body fell to the side. Kitan got his feet, looking exhausted. The overseer walked out cautiously, looking from the corpse to Kitan.

"Ladies… and gentleman… due to certain rules being broken, we must, discuss... these events." He then rushed over to the leaders overseeing the tournament.

The people seemed to be frustrated, from what Jade could see. One went so far as to raise his arms above his head, and slamming his hand into the palm of his other. After a few moments of the one who was previously overseeing Kitan's match returned to the middle of the fighting grounds. He cleared his throat, gave one final look which was returned with a nod from the others, then turned to the crowd and spoke. "I give you our final winner... Kitan."

The people hesitantly applauded for him.

"We will return tomorrow for a special, final match between the winners thus far. Have a good evening."

With that the people made their way outside and left the remaining fighters to do as they saw fit.

Kitan made his way to the exit slowly due to the trauma his body went through in his last fight. Jade and Axel reached him shortly to help him walk.

"You know, at the rate your going I may have to bet on someone else in this final match." Axel said with a smile.

"I didn't say I was the most skilled fighter here, I only joined at the request of my master. She obviously had faith in my skills she pounded into me every day so I have to try if only for her."

Axel laughed at his comment and the three of them made their way to the inn. Once there Axel turned to Jade.

"You know you can stay here tonight, I wouldn't want a lady walking alone on these unknown streets."

"I am grateful for your thoughts of my safety but I can handle simple thugs. Good night Axel. Make sure he doesn't move too much."

Axel smiled and replied "If I have to I will strap em down to the bed."

She smiled and nodded then left. Leaving Axel to do as he pleased. Jade was a third of the way there when she noticed a woman with a crimson cloth wrapped around her with a crimson hood. As she passed the lady motioned to get her attention. Jade looked around to see if she was indeed talking to her.

"Jade Nichols I presume?"

She absently felt for her small hidden weapons at her side. "Yes, I am. And you are?"

"A messenger to you from an acquaintance of mine; he lacks the tact for subtlety. Tell your fool of friend; the gambler named Axel, the Proeliator un Fatum he must travel to the land east of here. Go to Zocun and ask for 'The Chess master'. The thing he desires most will be there. A second chance to retrieve what was taken from him."

Before Jade could ask who she meant, the lady threw something at the ground. Blind Jade moved back and covered her eyes, pulling her dagger out for protection. When she could see she saw she was alone. Jade hurried onward to the inn she was staying at and tried to sleep, her mind was restless. The lady's words were running through her mind until she reluctantly dozed off and fell asleep. She woke to the sun's rays. Hurrying to get herself ready she ran to the inn the two were staying at. She had just made it when they were walking out.

"Hey good timing we were just about to meet—"

"Do either one of you know what Proeliator un Fatum means?"

Kitan's head flicked up, moving towards her and he said with a bit of anger in his voice  
"Where did you hear that? Was it a man with a crimson cloak and hood? When did you hear it? Where?!"

She stepped back under his interrogation and shook her head. "One question at a time, and maybe a little bit of manners, would make it much easier on both of us." She said with just as much emotion.

He opened his mouth to respond but took a breath and instead said "I apologize, Jade… please tell me what you know?"

She smiled more for herself than for him. She nodded and went on. "Last night a woman wearing the clothes you described approached me as a messenger. She told me to tell  
Axel who she called the Proeliator un Fatum, that what he desires is in Zocun. That what was taken from him will be there and he will have a second chance to retrieve it. That he must find a man named 'The Chess master'."

Kitan shook his head. "I only know that a man came to me, while I was training with my master and my friend" Kitan's hand balled into a fist as he went on. "He killed my friend and would have me as well but my master saved me. I vowed vengeance on him. This woman… I don't know who she is. Axel you know anything about this?"

Axel chimed in with a whistle. He shook his head and let out a very deep breath. "I know the woman. Her name is Abidona Chausten. She used to be the late ruler's advisor. I don't know the details but she was… let go of her position, and after a few years away from gossiping mouths sought me out. She had a job for me to do. Back then I was willing to do any job to rake in some money for my father and I. Long story short, I was caught and all my belongings were given to the family she had hired me to assassinate. I was put to death but Heh, managed to escape. SO she said my belongings are in Zocun huh?" Jade nodded "Then if it's alright with you, and seeing as you have no plans after the tournament, care to travel with me to retrieve my stuff?"

Kitan thought about it. He would have fulfilled his duties. He had to know though about something. "What's so valuable you would risk taking it back by force most likely?"

"I had come to own a… map. The map showed the way to let's say, something much more than riches… a way to live forever. Now I know you can't; the map showed the way to the hideout the Band of Seven used during the Great Divide."

Hearing this news, Kitan thought it over. _I could walk the road the Band of Seven walked; go see where they lived between jobs… I could continue the legend._ "I'm in. First though I got a match to fight in."

As they made their way to the fighting grounds, Jade occasionally would be about to speak but shut her mouth. Just before Kitan left the two of them to join the last three fighters, Jade mustered up the courage to speak.

"I want to come with you two." Then realizing what she said, blushed and spoke again. "I… I would like to come with you. Please? I have idolized Alyssa of the band since I was a little girl. To be able to travel the world like she did, to be able to help people the way she did… would make my life. Please let me join you?"

The two exchanged not only looks but also a smile. It was Kitan who spoke.

"You think we would follow do this without you? I think I speak for both of us when I say, we wouldn't have it any other way."

Jade smiled, overtaken by happiness. She would have cried if not for Axel, putting an arm around her shoulder and added "Besides, if it was the two of us it would be a sausage-fest. We can't have the ladies thinkin I'm something different, if you catch my drift."

She shook her head, still smiling, and shrugged off his arm. Kitan nodded and left them. Axel and Jade took their seats and waited for the match to begin. The four fighters walked out to hear the cheers of the crowd. Once the formalities were out of the way the overseer stepped near the edge and instructed them to begin. The fighters immediately paired off. Whitney and Tomas. Who used a regular sword and shield; Kitan and Dirk. He also carried a pair of dual swords. Kitan and Dirk slashed and evaded each other's strikes. They exchanged blow for blow. Kitan back flipped back a few feet. Just as his feet hit the ground Kitan somersaulted towards Dirk. When he was close to him he pivoted on his foot and slashed from both directions. Dirk parried both and attempted his own attack. He was fast, but Kitan was faster. He parried his attacks and sent a barrage of slashes and kicks his way. Training with his master he learned to not only use his weapons but also his hands and feet. He alternated between slashing and kicking. Slashing then punching. Dirk held his own, but eventually Kitan had him drop to his knees. Kitan saw that he was out when he dropped his weapons. He had let his guard down for a moment when Whitney tackled him from behind. The two rolled on the ground and ended up with her on top of him, with him pinned down. For a woman her size she knew how to use it to her advantage. She began to pound him with punch after punch. Kitan tried to cover his body as best he could. She was beginning to tire; he used this as an opening. Kitan grabbed her fists and with what leverage he could and flipped them onto her back. She had the gall to smile at him. Kitan, holding her arms down, looked around. Tomas was on the ground, a bloody heap of skin and bones. But he was alive, medics were looking at him. Dirk was being helped off the ground. Whitney head-butted him when he returned his attention to her. He rolled away and was assaulted once more. He didn't have a chance to defend himself. She moved like a wild animal, Kitan couldn't read her moves; she struck his head, took a knee and tripped him. As he fell she kicked his chest. He rolled away only to have a knee to his ribs. She was about to backhand him when he grabbed her arm. He twisted it until she screamed from the pain. He brought his knee into her chest as hard as he could. Hearing a crack, the two fell to the ground. Kitan had pushed himself too hard, he was having trouble breathing. She struggled to her feet. He did the same, if a bit more than she did. She pulled the pair of daggers she had used in her match the other day. He knew the deadly accuracy of them. Kitan calmed himself as she rushed him for one last attempt at victory. When she was just a few feet away, with a flick of her wrist she threw one at him. He leaned his body back and just as the tip cut into his shoulder Kitan caught it. Without stopping, he twirled it in his hand and flung it back at her. She was caught off guard; It made contact with her arm. She let out a short cry of pain but flicked the other one at him. This time he didn't catch it. The force behind it knocked him to the ground. The crowd was going wild. Both fighters knocked to the ground by the other. Neither one was getting up.

"L… ladies and gentleman… I believe, because neither can be named as the victor, that is without both killing each other… we must declare this a—" the overseer said to the crowd when movement stopped his words.

Whitney was on a knee, ever so slowly getting to her feet. Kitan was still on the floor on his stomach using his swords to push himself off. He was unable to do more than lift his chest. She pulled out another dagger and looked at it. The crowd was cheering. She looked at him and shook his head. She dropped the dagger and walked towards him. Kitan tried to put up something of a defense.

When she got closer shocked him when she leaned down and said "You can have the title… I don't care. I have bigger things to do. I feel you do too. So get to it. Oh and one day I plan on taking the title back." She gave a small, weak smile, turned, and made her way off the fighting grounds.

Kitan's vision was blurring now. He hadn't truly recovered from his fight the day before, and fighting two people the way he did exhausted him even more. He blacked out then. When he woke up he was back in his and Axel's room at the inn.

He struggled to sit up but Jade who was sitting next to him pushed him back down.

"Morning, champion." She said with a warm smile.

He shook his head. He remembered the fight. "I didn't win, she gave it to me. But it doesn't matter. How long have I been out?"

"You've been out for four days. Granted you came and went a few times but four days. How you feeling?"

Kitan looked at himself. He was wrapped up like a mummy. He tested his strength by moving his arms and legs. He felt some pain but with four days of rest it seemed, he was doing much better.

"I say another day of relaxation after that tournament and we can head out. What do you think? Yes?" Axel said sitting in a chair next to a window, biting into an apple. He went on to say something else but just sputtered out pieces of apple.

"Chew, swallow, and THEN speak. Tis bad manners." Jade said throwing a pillow at him.

He just smiled and positioned the pillow to make himself more comfortable. Kitan laughed at that and relaxed. The two of them talked about many things and Kitan just listened to their voices. He didn't remember when he fell asleep but he did. His dreams were full of adventure. He dreamt of travelling to new places, seeing those things he only heard from merchants. He dreamt of feeling the ocean breeze on his skin, blowing through his hair. Then somewhere in the dream his mind drifted to the map Axel had talked about and to the statue people had talked about, even in his home.

_**"Remember what they stood for, so that you may have a second chance to begin... a second chance at life, may hope guide you to a brighter future."**_

He intended to show the world just how bright his hope could make the world.


End file.
